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J.Jones, D.Q 




CARAVAN BOOK SERVICE 
QV B °°ks of the Sea 
87-06 — 168th Place 
Jamaica, N. Y. ] 1432 



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FROM 



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ORS. 






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FROM 



Tfe Forecastle to the Pulpi 



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FIFTY YEARS AA40NG SAILORS. 



CONTAINING AN ACCOUNT OF A WONDERFUL REVIVAL 
UPON THE SEA. 



BY 
CHARLES J. JONES, D. D., 

CHAPLAIN OF THE SAILORS' SNUG HARBOR, N. Y. 



WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY 

W. P. STRICKLAND, %. D., LL. D. 



PRINTED FOR THF AUTHOR, AND FOR SALE BY 

AMERICAN TRACT SOCIETY, 

ISO NASSAU STREET, NEW YORK, 



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Copyright by N. Tibbals & Sons. 

1884. 




7^ 



TESTIMONIALS. 



A few of the many Testimonials received by the Author from 
persons who have read the manuscript and advance sheets, are 
here submitted to the reader. 

From the Rev. Adam McClelland, D.D., Professor in the German 
Seminary, Dubuque, Iowa. 

<( Your book is exceptionally excellent in its style and con- 
tents. The divine, the merchant, the seaman, the lover of tra- 
vel and thrilling incidents ; in a word, all who study the ways of 
God to man will find 'From the Forecastle to the Pulpit' a 
very interesting and helpful book." 

From the Rev* Howard Crosby, D. D. , LL. D. 
"I have read your book with intense interest. You have 
brought graphically before the reader the personal experiences of 
many sinners converted to God, a testimony of great power and 
value to convince others. Such books should be read by Christians, 
with which to refresh their souls, and to meditate on God's sav- 
ing grace, instead of the philosophical books which only touch 
the intellect, and make no impression on the life." 

From the Rev. Theodore L. Cuyler, D. D. , Brooklyn, N. Y. 

"This volume is crammed with facts and incidents, showing 
how the gospel has rescued hundreds from spiritual shipwreck. 
If the book has interested me, how much more will it interest 
those for whom my beloved brother has prepared it ! It ought 
to go into every forecastle and bring Christ with it. 

May your newly launched craft catch the gales of the Spirit, 
and convoy many sailors to the ' desired haven !' She is well 
ballasted with truth, and has God's lamp in the binnacle. God 
bless her I" 

From the Rev. Samuel H. Hall, D.D., Secretary of the American 
Sea?nens Friend Society. 

" As few men have had such a life as you, out of which to 

3 



4 TESTIMONIALS. 

make an interesting biography, in my judgment your l From the 

castle to the Pulpit ' will be accepted as an extraordinary 
I have been entertained and instructed in perusing the 
manuscript, and the more I think about it, the more my assur- 
ance deepens, that it will do great good, illustrating, as it does, 
in a most wonderful degree, the special providence and grace of 

From the Reo. F. D. G. Prime, D.D., of the N. Y. Observer. 

"I have read with great interest the manuscript of a volume 
prepared by Rev. Chas. J. Jones, D. D., entitled ' From the Forecas- 
tle to the Pulpit/ The publication of the volume, I am confident, 
will be the means of doing great good among seamen and in 
awakening an interest in their behalf. " 

From Mr. Wm. Gar re/son, of the firm of Bradley, Garretson & 
Co., Publishers, Philadelphia. 

11 I believe the book w r orthy of a very large circulation. It 
held my attention for two full hours, and interested me greatly. 
1 1 struck me as being well written, and of great interest and value 
to ministers and others conducting revival work. By its numer- 
ous instances of reformations of drunkards, it will be invaluable 
to those engaged in Temperance work. Children from ten to 
fifteen years of age would like to read it. It ought to be read also 
by every man who wants to lead a better life, but fears it is useless 
to try, for there are so many instances where men have felt the 
the same, and yet have succeeded." 

From the Rev. Henry G. Van Dyke, D.D., of Brooklyn. 

"Your book, 'From the Forecastle to the Pulpit/ made a 

p impression upon me. Your style is exceedingly clear and 

rous, and the story you tell is a wonderful illustration of the 

rb that truth is stranger than fiction. It cannot fail to do 

1— not only to the men of the sea, for whom it will have a 

. irm, but to all who have a heart to appreciate the 

triumphs of God's saving grace." 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 

Early life — Leave Home — Cyclone - - - - - 13 

CHAPTER II. 
Evil courses — Awakening ------ 33 

CHAPTER III. 
Conversion and college life - - - - - - 54 

CHAPTER IV. 
Theological course — First ministry 75 

CHAPTER V. 
Mariners' Church, N. Y., 1854-5 — First fruits - - 95 

CHAPTER VI. 
A word in season — The young heretic - - - -120 

CHAPTER VII. 
Church work in 1856 — Prayer in the hatch-house - - 144 

CHAPTER VIII. 
The way to the kingdom — The dying message - - 167 

CHAPTER IX. 
Loss of the St. Denis — Ship Robert Parker - - - 189 

CHAPTER X. 
Coadjutors — What the lightning did - 205 

CHAPTER XI. 
Signs of the times — Chilian convert - - - - -23c 

CHAPTER XII. 
Increasing success — Answers to prayer - 265 



6 CONTEXTS. 

CHAPTER XIII. 
Sixty years in sin — Behold the Lamb ----- 282 

CHAPTER XIV. 
Great revival in the Navy — The faithful Swede - - 299 

CHAPTER XV. 
Increased interest — The dispersion 324 

CHAPTER XVI. 
Outside testimony — Wonderful scene - 340 

CHAPTER XVII. 
racious providence — U. S. S. Ohio — The sinner - - 361 

CHAPTER XVIII. 

U. S. S. Savannah — Light spreading - 386 

CHAPTER XIX. 
Permanent impressions — Death of Morris - -400 

CHAPTER XX. 
Extent of revival — Gulf Squadron 421 

CHAPTER XXI. 
The Storm, a calm — A wild Christian - 436 

CHAPTER XXII. 
African Squadron — Missionary volunteers - 456 

CHAPTER XXIII. 

U. S. S. Hartford. — Grace in the Flowery Kingdom - - 469 

CHAPTER XXIV. 

ira — Gold lace and blue flannel - - 485 

CHAPTER XXV. 

iral lexers — Resignation - - 503 

CHAPTER XXVI. 

xxvi. — Close of narrative — Glory to God - 517 



§t&inxtxm. 



to the men of the sea, whose perils, privations and privi- 
leges i have shared, and for whose salvation i have 
labored and prayed for more than forty 
years, this book is affection- 
ately dedicated by 

The Author. 



INTRODUCTION. 



The subject matter of this book is such as to com- 
mend it to all who are or may become interested in the 
development of spiritual life, and the enlargement of the 
sphere of individual influence. I have read this narrative 
of Dr. Jones' eventful career from "The Forecastle to 
the Pulpit," with indescribable and unabated interest, from 
the beginning to the end, covering, as his active life and 
ministry does, a period of more than half a century 
among " the men who go down to the sea in ships." 
This volume will more fully describe the peculiar char- 
acteristics of this class than any other work yet pub- 
lished. To the landsman it will reveal mysteries per- 
taining to the divine life of the soul at sea, of which he 
has not even dreamed. To the sailor it will come 
freighted with celestial fragrance, as the land breeze 
comes laden with sweet odors from the cinnamon isles, 
and encourage him also to keep a good lookout for " the 
land which is very far off." The reader will here meet 
with some of the most remarkable illustrations of the 
wonderful grace of God in the conversion of " the abun- 
dance of the sea," and in special answer to prayer, as well 
as in the visitation of judgment on the wilfully and finally 
impenitent. He will here read of bethels and mariners, 
churches ashore and afloat, made vocal with prayer and 
praise to God ; of ships speaking each other at sea, for 
* 9 



io INTRODUCTION. 

the purpose of telling the wonderful work of God in their 
own midst ; of revival after revival in mid ocean, on the 
lark continent," in far off islands of the 
. in China and Japan, in distant Australia, on the 
f the South Pacific, all along the coast of the 
Uiv tes, in the Army and the Navy, and in the 

merchant service ; in the bayous and tributary streams of 
the Mississippi, in Central America, and in Mexico, until 
hun Is were permeated with the blessed influ- 

ence of the Spirit of life. Here and there the single con- 
vert ^o'mg forth, Bible in hand, and heart aflame with the 
love of Christ, growing into praying bands of devout 
men, worshipping in the tops, in the chains, and between 
the guns, and burning with desire for the souls of their 
careless shipmates. The little cloud, which at first was 
no larger than a man's hand, at length covered the whole 
heavens, and descended upon the earth and sea in an 
" abundance of rain. " Where God was not known, nor 
his name revered, witnesses to his power and grace went 
forth on every hand, and one song rose up from every 
floating sanctuary : 

"Our God shall have dominion, 
And reign from shore to shore, 
Far as the dove's light pinion, 
Or eagle's wing can soar/' 

How one man could accomplish the numerous and 
diversified works which the writer of this book so 
faithfully performed, must ever remain a wonder. In 
connection with his pastoral duties, and extensive corres- 
pondence among the thousands of seamen for whose sal- 
vation he labored, bis office became a bureau of infor- 
mation, open day and night. From it, as from a great 



INTRODUCTION. II 

central telegraph station, the lines of his influence have 
gone out through all the earth, and his words of tender- 
ness and counsel, to the ends of the world. None were 
so low, so poor, or so abandoned as to be beyond 
the sphere of his labors, or fail to enlist the sympathies 
of his great benevolent heart Unquestionably one of 
the greatest factors of Christian beneficence, and one of 
the most efficient auxiliaries of the missionary cause, is 
found in the untiring and self-denying efforts of those who 
are laboring for the evangelization of the men of the 
sea. No pen can fully record what God has wrought 
through these multiplied agencies and instrumentalities. 
Yet here will be found vivid representations of some 
of the peculiar trials and triumphs of these toilers of 
the sea in their way to a better life, as well as some most 
graphic delineations of the sublime scenery of the ocean 
itself — all of which the writer saw and " part of which he 
was ;" for although he has been ' ' in deaths oft," and 
in perils multiplied, he still lives to tell the story of 

" A life on the ocean wave." 
The numerous sketches of individual character and 
experience and faithfulness to Christ — in humble spheres 
and amid formidable obstacles, are of seamen whose lives 
became intimately interwoven and identified with his 
own. The historic facts and personal reminiscences seem 
to increase and intensify the interest to the close. In 
this world of selfishness it is refreshing to find a man 
whose entire life has been devoted so exclusively to the 
welfare of others. It may well be said 

" Si monumentum quseris Interspice." 

W. P. Strickland. 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 



CHAPTER I. 

EARLY LIFE — LEAVING HOME — CYCLONE. 

Parentage — First religious impressions — School days — Struggle with pov- 
erty — Newsboy — The broken pane — Bent on going to sea — Farewell to 
home — Life on a man-of-war — Daily routine — Sea-sports — First convic- 
tions of sin — Scenes of horror — Fail overboard — Sinful propensities — End 
of the cruise — Convict ship — A white squall — At death's door — Home 
again — Off for New South Wales — On peril's brink — A sepoy mutiny — 
Ship again for Australia — A. trading voyage — Swarthy web-feet — A cy- 
clone — Loss of life — A demoralized crew — Our wisdom swallowed up — 
Deliverance. 

I WAS born and baptized in Deptford, county of 
Kent, England, in the year 1818. My parents were 
honest, industrious, hard-working people. They had ten 
children, of whom I was the eldest. Among my earliest 
recollections are those of the Sabbath-school, and its 
surroundings. The first scriptural idea that made any 
impression on my mind, was the invitation of Christ to 
children, illustrated by a small engraving, with the legend, 
" Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them 
not, for of such is the kingdom of heaven." That pic- 
ture of the Saviour sitting, the children gathered about 
him, and his hands spread in the act of blessing them, 

13 



14 : V YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

been like a pleasant vision to mc ever since. In 
ie ot the wildest orgies of my wicked life, it has 
re my mind, and at times recalled those days 
my childhood's innocence. I was sent to school at 
intervals, as my parents could afford the expense, from 
the time I was five years old until I was nearly nine. 
In the mean time other children having come upon the 
lie, increasing the family expenses, while there was no 
increase of income, it became necessary, in order to 
economize, to keep me at home. The sum of my educa- 
. at that time was, that I had learned to read well, 
and had acquired the rudiments of writing. When be- 
tween nine and ten years old my parents removed to 
London, that my mother might find employment more 
readily. She was very industrious and quick with her 
needle, and as my father never earned more than a 
pound a week, her continuous labor was a necessity. She 
struggled nobly to keep the wolf from the door, and al- 
thou not always succeed, she never lost heart, 

nor slackened her hands. I have known her to make 
shirts for half a crown (fifty cents) a dozen, and she 
;ld not slight the work even though the pay was 
malL I have often watched her as she plied her 
lie, weeping bitterly, but I could not learn from her 
fief I need not say that while labor 
SO ill}- paid, we sometimes suffered for bread. 

me to London I obtained a situation 
n errand boy, at a bookseller's. My wages reached 
nificent sum of three shillings (seventy-five cents) 
per week. And for this I walked every morning a dis- 
tance of nearly two miles to the city, carrying with me 
my dinner a piece of bread and butter and a bottle 



EARLY LIFE. I 5 

of cold tea. After running about the city all day I 
walked home again at night. This I did for over a year. 
Subsequently, after changing places several times, I found 
myself in the position of a news-boy, on the " Royal Ex- 
change." 

It was while thus employed that an incident occurred 
which, though slight in itself, bore such a relation to my 
after life as to give direction to my whole future destiny. 
I was skylarking with one of my fellow employees, and 
unintentionally pushed his head through a pane of glass 
in the store window. The value of the glass was enough 
to absorb the whole of my week's wages. My employer 
informed me that I must pay for my carelessness, and as 
I knew it would take that much out of the common 
stock, the whole of which was barely sufficient for our 
support, I then and there resolved that I would go to 
sea. 

As soon as my purpose was formed, I went home and 
told my mother, who, for the moment, was almost stupe- 
fied. But, recovering herself, she strictly forbade me to 
think of such a thing, and told me to go to my work. 
In obedience to her wish I did so, but I was no longer 
the same boy. I had no longer any ambition for any- 
thing on the land ; I neglected my business and lost my 
situation. My father then found me employment in a 
wholesale drug establishment, where he was engaged as 
packer. Here, however, it was the same story. I neg- 
lected my duties and brought trouble on my father, who 
being highly respected by the firm, was spoken to by 
the senior partner about my conduct. He revealed the 
secret. 

I was bent on going to sea. My employer said, 



\ \ i ^RS AMONG SAILORS. 

M Well I let him go. My brother is a captain in the Royal 

Navy, he will find him a ship." My parents talked the 
iduded to let me go. I was delight- 
ed with their decision. I felt like a bird freed from its 
My soul luxuriated in a sense of freedom. I was 
to i\ it which before I only imagined, the great seas 

running mountains high ; the sight of far off lands ; the 
of which I had read : all were now to 
become matters of real experience. 

A letter to the commander of H. B. M. Ship 

u 1\ -lades," then fitting out at Plymouth, secured me a 

the ship's books, as a second-class boy. The 

hurry, bustle and excitement of the preparation for my 

irture now absorbed the interest of the whole family. 

It was a severe tax upon their already straitened rcsour- 

to procure me the necessary outfit. But the day of 

departure at length arrived. Clad in my new sailor suit 

of blue jacket and trousers, and low straw hat, I was as 

y monarch could be of his royal robes; the 

envied of my playfellows, who had gathered to see me 

off, the cynosure of the neighbors' eyes, who gazed with 

admiration at my rig, and pitied me as they thought of 

my peril and exposure. 

My dear mother, weeping as she pressed her farewell 

upon my lips, said to me, M Charlie, be a good boy ; 

and you will make many friends." 

J pr my father's hand, turned my back 

• n my childh' ;ne to do battle with the world of 

It was a beautiful Sabbath morning, the 6th day 
of Jun< My father accompanied me to the 

nier which was to take me to Plymouth, to join 



EARLY LIFE. 1 7 

my ship. He remained on board until the vessel slowed- 
up at North-fleet, where the friends of the passengers 
were to go ashore ; he then gave me a nervous grasp of 
the hand, pressed me to his bosom, bowed his head, and 
weeping, over me, said, " Good-by, my boy !" With a 
word of counsel and an affectionate kiss, he hurried from 
my sight to hide his emotions, passed over the side, and 
into the boat that rowed him to the shore. But so 
intent was I watching with childish pleasure the danc- 
ing of the waves, as the steamer forged ahead, that I 
was scarcely conscious until some time afterwards, that 
in that moment of parting w T ith my father, I had severed 
myself from all that I had ever known of earthly ties. I 
was like a horse that had thrown his rider, and was cours- 
ing away at his own free will. No friendly hand was by 
to check my career. I was freed from the restraint of 
home, and at liberty to follow my own impulses and pas- 
sions. That heart-felt " good-by," however, still rang in 
my ears. 

1 ' Sweet music in my heart I bore, 
Long after it was heard no more. " 

The steamer, plowing her way through the waters, 
absorbed my attention, and I was soon lost in delight as 
before. Two days and nights passed rapidly away. To 
my memory now they seem like a dream. 

On reaching Plymouth I proceeded by boat to the 
hulk "Victory," alongside of which the "Pylades" was 
to be rigged and fitted out. I was very soon initiated 
into the mysteries of life in a man-of-war. I need 
not say how different it was from anything I had 
ever conceived, how strongly and how strangely in con- 
2 



IS FIFTY V! AKs AMONG SAILORS. 

I with all my earlier experience. I very soon how- 
Lstomed to my surroundings, and 
to the change. 

Three moire 1 away before we were ordered on 

rd our own ship. It was quite a relief to us all 

to hear that she was put into commission, and that 

were to leave our temporary quarters and get ready 

for sea. On the 5th of September we left Plymouth 

cruise of three years, on the coast of South 

America. For the first three days after sailing I suffered 

— ickness, paid the usual tribute to old Neptune, 

bore the badinage of the more experienced among 

my shipmates, and entered with spirit into the daily 

routine. 

ea my station was in the main-top — in port I was 
-boy, and with another about my own age, did duty 
at tl —handing out the man-ropes to persons 

coming alongside. At quarters I was powder-boy of one 
of the quarter-deck guns. Our ship's armament was six- 
teen thirty-two pounders, short carronades, and two long 
twelves. Every evening after supper the drum beat to 
quarters, and the crew were inspected by the officers at 
thei r, the retreat was beaten, the 

cutl. trding-pikes were returned to the 

arm-racks, and the guns thoroughly secured. The next 
imand in order was "all hands shorten sail, and reef 
re the last notes of the boatswain's call 
, tlie men were scrambling aloft like 
so many monkeys — the men of the different tops 
vying with each other in their efforts to get their 
top -and "lay down " in advance of the 

others. The competition was very eager. The process 



EARLY LIFE. 19 

was watched with interest by the officers, who, while 
they very rarely praised the men for the rapid execution 
of their tasks, were always ready to blame any tardiness 
of movement ; and woe to the man or boy who was the 
last down from aloft. He was sure to be marked, 
and if the tardiness occurred a second time, to be pun- 
ished by stopping his grog, and a month on the black 
list. If he escaped the " cat," he was well off. 

The vessel being brought under easy sail for the night, 
all hands were turned up to dance and skylark — every 
one before the mast being permitted to enjoy himself to 
the top of his bent. Fun was the order of the evening ; 
singing, dancing, boxing, wrestling, story-telling — in 
short anything that pleased was allowable until eight bells, 
or eight o'clock. Then the hammocks were piped down 
and the ship was quiet once more. It was on one of these 
occasions that the memories of home and the parting 
instructions of my Sabbath-school teacher came back to 
me with all their original freshness. I told my thoughts 
to a boy of my own age, who had been similarly blest, and 
we two crept away in the darkness to weep over our sins. 
We were in all probability the only two in that whole 
ship's company who were so affected. We wept bitterly, 
wishing from our hearts that some of the men could hear 
our good resolves, and punish us if we broke them by 
giving way to profanity or drinking any more. 

While in the midst of our good intentions, the ham- 
mocks were piped down, and the shrill call of the boat- 
swain and his mates interrupted our conversation and 
our prayers, This ended the first, and, I think, the last 
deep conviction of sin experienced by either of us during 
the whole cruise. From that time forward I imitated 



20 llli\ SAILORS. 

without restraint the immoral pra >fmy shipmates. 

of age I was a drunkard, 
and drank to i henever liquor came in 

my i of horror which would have shocked me 

;• two before, now did not affect me in the least. 
lence, intern] death even failed to make any 

The authorities resorted to the 
litest occasion. There were no religious 
incentives, nor any moral restraints. Instead of Divine 
. even in form, the forenoon of the Sabbath was 
sen, once a month, for reading the articles of war, 
which only informed us of the many ways there were 
ling to the penalty of death. These articles were 
imitted to memory, and thus we were constantly re- 
minded of the perils attached to any act of disobedience 
or insubordination. The name of God was never heard, 
except in blasphemy. The officers cursed the men to 
ind the men cursed the officers behind their 
If tlie presence of death could have moved me 
<>r induced the dread of eternity, I had not gone 
ar on the road to ruin, nor had I attained to that pre- 
cocity in sin which made me reckless even of eternal con- 
sequence. My shipmates have more than once been 
icces at my side, by falling from aloft. I saw 
in that vessel what few men have witnessed at sea, viz., 
dying on one side, flogging on the other, and cutting 
throat- amidships ; and all these at one and the same 
aent. M ceiveda blow myself for attempt- 

at the suicide of one of my young compan- 

Wli: in tiic harbor of Rio dc Janeiro, I had a 

ful escape from drowning. I had been over 



LEAVING HOME. 21 

the side scraping the gangway steps, but losing my hold 
I fell overboard ; and as all hands were holystoning the 
decks, my cries were not heard. I had sunk twice, and 
come again to the surface, but being unable to swim, I 
was just going down for the third time, when a midship- 
man providentially looking over the quarter, saw me, as 
the tide was carrying me astern. He threw a coil of 
rope over my head, which I grasped and was saved, to 
my great joy and to the satisfaction of my shipmates, 
with whom I was somewhat of a favorite. Having 
cruised for three years on the coast of South America, 
encountering heavy gales on both sides of the Horn, and 
passing through more than the ordinary vicissitudes of a 
sea life, I returned home to my mother. No longer the 
innocent boy I was when I left her, but a hardened sin- 
ner, and a confirmed drunkard and blasphemer, although 
not yet sixteen years of age. After a stay of a few weeks 
ashore, I left home and friends once more to resume my 
wanderings on the wide waste of waters. 

My next ship was a merchantman ; she was chartered 
by the government to carry convicts. We took on 
board three hundred of them from a disabled ship at 
Cork, to be carried to Van Dieman's land. A few nights 
after we had received them, a fatal disease broke out 
among them, and thirty souls were taken from us in the 
course of a week. Here I was familiar with death again, 
but remained as careless and thoughtless as ever. 

On this voyage out, while one of the lower deck ports 
was open for the admission of fresh air, we were struck 
by a white squall. The ship was thrown on her beam 
ends, the open port being on the lee side, and the water 
rushing into the between decks through an aperture some 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

square, there seemed a probability that 

our ship with her three hundred and sixty souls must 

down. She had whole top-sails and fore and 

main top- gallant sails on her when she was struck, and 

1 not possibly right until the sail was taken in. The 

i fearful one, and was as agonizing as it was 

■f. It was of the Lord's mercies that we were not 

sumed. We succeeded however in getting the sail 

off her, with the aid of the prisoners, who were released 

the purpose ; and they worked for their very lives. 

In a short time the ship righted and was soon made all 

snug again. 

While in Canton, in China, on the same voyage, we 
were seized with a sickness, which took off several of our 
crew. I was brought on deck to die, and cried bitterly 
to the steward to save my life, yet I never thought of 
the eternal world, nor of " Him in whose hand my 
Lth is, and whose arc all my ways." Instead of glori- 
fying Him I ignored His very existence. Yet I was raised 
once more from the brink of the grave. 

Returning home a second time, after an absence of 
eighteen months, I remained by the ship, and made 
another voyage in her to Sidney, N. S. Wales ; carrying 
in three hundred convicts. On the passage out, the 
scurvy broke out among the prisoners, and by the 
of the representative of the government we ran 
n to the harbor of Bahia, on the coast of Brazil, for a 
supply of fresh provisions. After remaining there long 
enough to c. the condition of the men, and take 

in a supply sufficient for a month at sea, we got 
undcrw cd on our voyage. But the land- 

wind dying out toward evening, we clewed up the 



LEAVING HOME. 23 

sails and anchored for the night. The convicts, some 
of whom were seafaring men, who had been sent 
out of their country for their country's good, laid a plot 
to break out of the prison, massacre the crew and guard, 
and take the ship. Their intention was to run her 
ashore and make their escape into the interior. Their 
plans were well formed, and, but for providential inter- 
ference, not one of the crew would have been left to tell 
the tale. The chief officer was awakened by a noise 
about three o'clock in the morning, and without any 
assignable reason, rushed on deck and ran forward to the 
fore hatch. Finding the light out, and the sentry 
sleeping, he jumped down and seized the lock of the 
prison door, a very large padlock, which fell to pieces 
in his hands. A few moments only were sufficient to 
rouse the ship's crew, double the guard, and secure the 
men, in whose possession were found the necessary tools 
and weapons to accomplish their ends. Thus were we 
saved from assassination by the merciful providence of 
God 

Having transferred our prisoners to the proper au- 
thorities, we sailed for the bay of Bengal, and passing 
through Torres Straits, and the thousand islands of the 
Indian Archipelago, anchored in Madras roads. Here 
we took a charter to carry Sepoy troops for the British 
government to Poulo Pinang, in the Straits of Malacca, 
and to bring back a returning regiment. The voyage 
out was peaceful enough. We landed our passengers 
safely and embarked six hundred others, with whom we 
sailed for Madras. But while on our passage up the 
Bay of Bengal, the troops became insubordinate and 
violent, and finally broke out into open mutiny. Some 



24 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

! wrong had been done them by their 
an officers, over which they brooded, and at a 

e one wild yell, and rushing aft in a 
v, attacked the native officers, who met them at the 
ik o( the quarter-deck, and held them temporarily at 
In an instant the ship was in a state of wild 
lenient. The chief officer, who was in charge of the 
deck, taking in the situation at a glance, acted with 
at promptness and decision. He cried out, " Lay aft, 
men : lay aft and man the arm chest !" The captain 
said to him, <4 Wait a moment, sir." " No sir/' said 
the mate, " no time to spare now, sir." " Lay aft, 
men, lay aft !" and they did lay aft. The crew, 
twenty-six in number, came leaping over the heads of 
the mutinous Sepoys, and in less time than it takes 
to write this, twenty-six loaded muskets were on the 
poop-deck, seven feet above, pointing down into the 
dense mass of humanity which surged to and fro on 
the quarter deck below. The rushing out of the 
commanding and other commissioned officers, armed, 
from the cabin, and the sudden appearance of the 
armed crew in that elevated position, checked them, 
officers rallying, drove them back, and the muti- 
neers retreated, flinging burning brands of fire-wood at 
us ; but for the time we were safe. No man slept that 
ver. We lay on the poop deck with our 
mu led, each man having a cutlass and pistol 

under his head. In a few days quiet was restored and 
all on before. 

Thus were we again delivered; but we thanked otir- 

>r the rescue instead of giving thanks to God, to 

whom we were so deeply indebted for our courageous 



A MUTINY. 25 

chief officer, the right man, in the right place, at the 
rirht time. The captain, who was a North of England 
man, and brought up in the coal trade, was now for the 
first time in his life in command of an India trader. 
He had little acquaintance with the character of the men 
with whom he had to do. He knew of course the dis- 
parity of numbers between six hundred, and less than 
sixty — but he feared that the sight of arms in the hands 
of the sailors, would make the Sepoys more desperate. 
He was in favor therefore of delay, and an effort toward 
a peaceful solution of the difficulty. 

The mate was a very different man. He knew the 
mutineers who were threatening the life of all hands. 
He was moreover prompt, energetic and brave by 
nature, a man for emergencies, as we had proved on 
another perilous occasion. It was well indeed for us 
that we had the man for the crisis, otherwise I had 
not lived to write these lines. We were endangered 
by the same class of men, who twenty years later at 
Delhi and at Cawnpore showed their treacherous nature 
in the massacre of the missionaries. These men needed 
prompt treatment and they got it. The appeal to their 
fears with the muzzles of twenty-six muskets at their 
heads was more potent than any words. If the precau- 
tion had not been taken when they first came on board 
of stowing their arms away in the hold, this mutiny 
would have had a tragical termination. We heard, 
afterwards, that the ringleaders were tried, and thirty of 
them hung in Madras. 

Having completed our charter, we sailed for Calcutta, 
and loaded thence for home, arriving in London in Dec. 
1837. The officer referred to above, had during the 



1 [FTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

\\ n a deep interest in my welfare. He had 

>n, and now, desiring to advance me 

the quarter-deck, offered me the position of third offi- 

in a new ship which he was to command, on the con- 
>n that I would wait until she was ready for sea. My 
>f life, however, prevented this. Being still under 
dominion of strong drink, I soon spent all my wages, 
and told him that I could wait no longer. Before going 
to sea, he gave me a line to a friend of his who shipped 
me in the barque Eden of London, bound to Australia 
i emigrants. This was in January, 1838. The voy- 
was to occupy two years. After landing our pas- 
sengers in the port of Adelaide, we sailed for the East 
Indies, and engaged in trading voyages between Calcutta 
and the Mauritius. 

During the passage from Port Louis to Calcutta, on 
one of our trips, we were overtaken by one of those fear- 
ful cyclones which are so frequent in those latitudes. On 
this occasion we lost six men overboard. The ship was 
1, and lay on her beam ends for several hours. 
It was generally admitted that had she been loaded, in- 
f being in ballast trim, we could not have survived 
fury of the storm. In order that the reader may 
clearer conception of the perils through which we 
and the effect it produced upon the ship's crew, I 
will try to describe the condition of things when the 
at its height To do this, I must go back 
a little, and begin by stating that in Port Adelaide, 
whi< 1 miles from the city, the men who 

pped in London, deserted us, almost to a man. Ade- 
laide was at that time a new settlement, laborers were 
scarce, and wages high. Four dollars a day was paid 



A CYCLONE. 27 

for building adobe walls. The high wages proved a 
strong inducement to the seamen to break their contract 
with the ship, and leave her, that they might secure 
some of the wealth that seemed so abundant. 

When ready for sea, it was with great difficulty that 
we secured men enough to work the ship to Calcutta. 
On our arrival there the beach-combers, as they are call- 
ed, deserted, as our former crew had done in the last 
port. It became necessary therefore to ship a crew of 
Lascars, or native sailors. We then became what the 
sailors call a " country wallah." A few Europeans were 
kept to steer the ship, while the swarthy webfeet 
performed the actual labor of working her. We had 
thus a composite crew, consisting of thirty-six Lascars, 
with their own native officers, Serang and Tindal, and 
four Europeans in the capacity of " sea cunnies ;" also a 
carpenter, sailmaker and boatswain. The need of this 
detail will be seen presently. Early in the morning 
of the day in which the storm struck us, we were bowl- 
ing along at the rate of ten or eleven knots an hour, with 
the wind about a point on the port quarter, carrying low- 
er topmast and top -gallant studding-sails forward, and 
topmast and top-gallant studding sails aft. About four 
bells in the morning watch, the wind freshened consider- 
ably, making the booms top and crack, and driving her 
through the sea splendidly. In another hour, so rapidly 
had the gale increased and hauled at the same time, that 
we had all the studding sails in. By noon the royals 
were furled, and the ship close hauled. By supper time 
she was plunging heavily into the sea under single-reefed 
topsails and main top-gallant sail, together with the jib 
and spanker. By this time, however, the jib boom began 



FIFTY vi: IRS AMONG sailors. 

how signs of weakness. This the mate reported to 

the captain and suggested the propriety of taking in the 

and reducing nerally. The captain acquiesced 

As the gale was evidently on the increase, the 
iven to the mate, "Take all hands forward 
and get in that jib. Be lively about it — have the men 
read\- to lay out as soon as the sail is spilled." The mate 
went forward to obey the order. The captain directed 
the man at the wheel to put the helm up, " Hard up ! let 
her go well off !" u Hard up, sir/' responded the helms- 
man, and she paid off beautifully. At this juncture the 
jib was hauled down, and sixteen of the crew laid out to 

her up the sail. The captain, thinking there had 
been time enough to get the jib on the boom, sang out 
to the man at the wheel, " Meet her, meet her, my man !" 
The wheel came rapidly down, and the ship flying to, 
plunged heavily into the sea, as she did so, the wind 
getting under portions of the sail which had not been 
secured by the gaskets, tore the canvas from the hands 
of the men, and bellying out over their heads, knocked 
>f the poor fellows off the boom, five of them falling 

I board ; the sixth fetching up on the back ropes, held 
on until he was rescued and taken in-board. At the 
same instant that the men were slatted into the waves, 
the jib, split in pieces by the force of the wind, went 
flying away to leeward, with a noise like a clap of 
thunder. As soon as the men fell, the agonizing cry 
A man overboard!" One of the Europeans 
sprung into the starboard quarter boat, to clear her 
>r lowering. The captain, observing his efforts, 
commanded him to stop, as it would only be a sacri- 
fice of the boat and six or eight more men in a vain 



A CYCLONE. 29 

attempt to save the already lost, for no boat could possi- 
bly live in such a sea. We were compelled therefore to 
leave the poor fellows to their fate. We strained our 
eyes in vain to catch a glimpse of them, but the relent- 
less sea had swallowed them up, and they sank, with their 
pagan prayers on their lips, to rise no more until the 
sea gives up its multitudinous dead. It required but 
a short time to get the canvas off the ship, and make 
her snug for the night, as we fondly hoped. But, as the 
darkness deepened, the force of the wind increased. 

The sudden death of five men who a few moments be- 
fore were in the full vigor of life, could not but cast a 
gloom over us all. So far however was the wind from 
abating, that it rose from a gale to a storm, and from a 
storm to a hurricane. It seemed as if it were impossible 
to blow harder, yet it raged even more fiercely through 
the first and middle watches of the night, so that by the 
time the morning watch commenced, our laboring craft 
was hove to, under bare poles ; not so much as a tarpau- 
lin in the weather rigging could we show. The men 
had been sent below, out of the way ; the petty officers 
alone were on deck, and the mate walked the weather 
side of the poop. The sea was mad, the ship almost 
unmanageable ; her helm was lashed a-lee, but having no 
after canvas on her to keep her head to the wind, she 
fell off into the trough of the sea and fairly wallowed ; she 
made very bad weather of it all night. About four 
bells, six A. M., a tremendous sea struck her from stem to 
stern-post, on the port side, springing every stanchion of 
her bulwarks from the forward part of her forechains to 
the afterpart of her mizzen-rigging ; and striking the 
rudder with great force, parted the line which had held 



30 FIFTY YEARS AMONG sailors. 

the helm a-lee. The wheel, thus released, spun rapidly 
and hurled the helmsman overboard. He was 
the sixth ofour crew snatched away by death within ten 
hours. Alas ! he was u the only son of his mother, and 
was a widow." 
The sea that had struck the ship with such violence 
broke aboard of her and flooded the decks. Every- 
thing moveable was started. The sailmakcr was washed 
under the keel of the longboat ; the carpenter picked 
himself up in the lee scuppers, up to his chin in water, 
with the coil of the main brace around his neck. Hav- 
crawled up to windward, he noticed that the helms- 
man was gone from the wheel, and was the first to re- 
port the fact. The mate was thrown into the lee quar- 
ter boat, in which the goose coop, torn from between 
the after skylights, bore him company. It was evident 
that the situation was more than serious. The vessel 
on her beam ends, her ballast shifted, and holding 
her down. The Lascars were below, demoralized by the 
loss of their shipmates and the imminent peril they were 
in. The condition of affairs imperatively demanded that 
hould be done and done quickly. The sail- 
makcr suggested to the captain to allow him to get up a 
new forestay -ail from below and set the head of it on 
the lower part of the mizzen stay, for the purpose of 
ping her head to the wind. The captain ordered 
him >. The sail was brought up and bent, and 

ired effect. 
The ier after that, but there was no 

abatement of cither wind or sea. The force of the hur- 
ricane was simply tremendous ; the wind fairly shrieked 
through the rigging, which, on the weather side, was as 



A, CYCLONE. 31 

taut as a harp string. It gave one the idea of sea and 
wind in wild chorus, sounding the requiem of departed 
souls. The force of the storm culminated at about four 
bells in the forenoon, At that: hour the general aspect 
was wild and unearthly. We were in the condition de- 
scribed by the Psalmist, " Our wisdom was swallowed 
up.'' Everything that human ingenuity could suggest or 
human power accomplish had been done, yet the forces 
arrayed against us could neither be lessened in their 
fury nor moved to pity. We seemed to be in the grasp 
of a merciless fate, in the relentless cl«tch of powers, we 
could neither direct nor control. The only being who 
could have aided us we did not recognize, nor think of. 
The shrieking blast, the angry sea, the groaning ship, as 
she struggled to resist the terrific onset of the mountain- 
ous waves marshalling themselves against her, following 
each other in rapid succession, as if they had rallied for a 
final charge. These things, on the one hand, and the 
weak and worn out crew on the other, made our situa- 
tion truly appalling. 

Just at this point a Lascar, one of the largest and most 
stalwart of the ship's company, rushed upon deck, mount- 
ed the after part of the spars, and standing with his 
back to the mainmast, raised his face and his right arm 
toward heaven. Poising himself, he began to scream 
at the top of his voice, as if he were shouting to his gods 
for help. The unearthly sounds that came from his 
throat startled the whole ship's company. The first 
impression was, that the man was insane. The crew 
gathered in groups and gazed on him with wondering 
eyes, doubting what he could mean. The captain came 
and ordered him to stop and come down, but he paid 



32 in- TV YEARS AMONG sailors. 

DO attention to him. The captain then sprang up 
f the Lascar, seized his arm, and attempt- 
l him down. His muscles were tense 
and firm as those of a trained athlete. The captain, 
though a strong man, could no more move his extended 
arm, than if it had been that of a bronze statue, which 
in color, in rigidity, in drapery and in pose it most re- 
sembled, lie continued in that position for some min- 
utes, uttering the same wild and unmeaning cries which 
above the howling of the storm. He seemed 
the impersonation of some rapt prophet or seer, hold- 
ing converse with another world, such a one as Elijah 
was, when he invoked the judgments of heaven on 
iters and persecutors of God's covenant people. 
There was a peculiar impressiveness about the whole 
scene. To the sailor's mind it was ominous of evil. The 
attitude of this swarthy sailor, pleading with some real or 
imaginary god, or hurling defiance at him, the pitiless 
rm venting its rage, the superstitious awe, and the 
se of utter helplessness depicted on the faces of the 
crew, combined to make a picture which left an in- 
ceablc impression on every one who witnessed it. It 
failed, however, I fear, to produce any salutary effect on 
heart and conscience of the godless crew. The 
then called upon his god, but the so-called Christian 
sailors were insensible to devotion, and were, Jonah-like, 
a the sides of the ship." 15y evening however the 
rm lulled sufficiently to enable us to right the ship by 
heaving her ballast to windward, and we made sail and 
proceeded on our way. 



CHAPTER II. 

EVIL COUFSES — AWAKENING. 

Evil courses— Satanic sugges* ; ons — Arrive in the United States — Ship 
" Harkaway "— My first Bi>4e — Encouragement to faithful workers — 
the brig "Billow" — the Sweeper's Prayer — Distressed and anxious — The 
Midnight prayer — Broken resolves — Sailors' Home — The secret of failure 
— Insane purpose — The dark preceding the dawn — Invitation to church 
— "Consider your ways"— ' 7 'he terrors of the law — Too late — The 
open Bible — Write to mother^-The great Physician — A ray of hope — 
Asking prayer. 

In Calcutta my evil courses were continued. My 
only wonder is that the Lord did not leave me to sink 
in the vortex of vice mtc ^vhich I was daily drawn. 
There were times in which conscience awoke and alarmed 
me, by exciting my fears. But these were only lucid 
intervals in my moral insanity, at which times, evil 
suggestions would present themselves in such forms as 
these : " Why trouble yourself about these things ? You 
are young yet — leave such foolish thoughts for old age. 
How do you suppose you can get along in this world if 
you give way to such nonsense ? What is the use of 
living, if you cannot enjoy life's pleasures now? Take 
your shipmates' motto for your own, "A short life it may 
be, but a merry one let it be, at all risks.'' Thus 
Satan continued to deceive and blind me, and I to 
believe and be led by him ; and giving way with reckless 
2 33 



r l YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

pidity to temptation, I sank deeper and deeper 
in sin. 

On our arrival at Port Louis, in November, 1839, we 
found an American ship, the " Girard," of Philadelphia, 
which had been disabled in a hurricane and abandoned 

the underwriters. The " Eden " was chartered to 
bring her cargo to New York. This resulted in send- 
in- our " Lascars " back to Calcutta. As we were now 
bound to the United States, it was necessary to re-ship 
the few Europeans who remained on board, as well as 
to obtain new hands. The captain offered me higher 
and I signed the new articles with the rest. We 
arrived in New York in February, 1840. Here I left 
my ship, took up my quarters in a rum-hole, in Water 

et, and dashed on with unrestrained appetite, until 
the landlord, finding my money gone, told me it was time 
to ship, although I had not been in his house a week. I 
shipped for Savannah, my effects consisting of an oil cloth 
suit, " a donkey's breakfast " for a bed, and two gallons 

am. The rest is briefly told. Eleven days on the 

to Savannah, in a leaky ship. I ran away from 

her in the night, was put in jail, kicked out in the 

ning, and spent several days in drunkenness, during 
which I sold my clothing, and spent the proceeds, 

[her with my month's advance, for rum, and then 

d in the "Olive Branch" for Liverpool, arriving 
in May. I left her there, only to pursue the same 
course. In a few days I was outward bound again in the 
ship %i Harkaway," Captain Augustus Proal, for New 
J 

Up to this time I could truly say, "Refuge failed me; 
no man cared for my soul." But blessed be my ever dear 



EVIL COURSES. 35 

Redeemer ! He had followed me in all my wanderings 
from the path of righteousness and virtue, and now was 
about to interpose for my salvation. He led me by 
a way I knew not. I shipped before the mast as an able 
seaman, and " turned to " on Wednesday. On Saturday 
afternoon the captain came forward, and calling the 
crew around him, said, in a pleasant voice : " Men, 
to-morrow is the Sabbath day, and I should be very 
much pleased to have you all attend church ;" giving as a 
reason, that we were about to sail on the following Tues- 
day, and that we ought all to take the love of God to sea 
with us in our hearts. He told us of the Saviour's 
calling the fishermen on the shores of Galilee, to be his 
disciples, and of their immediately leaving their ships, and 
following him. He spoke also of the willingness of 
Christ to save sailors as well as all other sinners, now, and 
closed by exhorting us all to become Christians. We all 
listened attentively as he unfolded to us the precious 
promises of God to save sinners, who repent and forsake 
their sins. The result was, we promised to go to church. 
But, when we met in the forecastle on Monday morning, 
a rehearsal of Sunday's doings revealed the fact that but 
two of us — of whom I was one — had kept the promise. 
I had been to sea for nine years, in men-of-war and 
merchantmen of different countries, leading all that time 
a wild, reckless and sinful life, and had met no man who 
gave expression to religious views, or who manifested any 
interest in the eternal welfare of his fellow-men. Captain 
Proal was the first who had ever brought divine things to 
my attention. 

Efforts to follow up the good impression were made 
during the passage to New York. Religious services 



3<5 FIFTY YEARS among sailors. 

were held every Sabbath oil the quarter deck, wind and 

. and weekly meetings for Bil !e read- 

; and prayer, in the cabin, the captain officiating. 

.wand passengers were invited to attend. He 

. e me the first Bible I cvo:r had ; and when at the end 

ge, I was called into the cabin to receive my 

he again affectionately invited me to turn to the 

d. I did not follow his counsel, at that time, but it 

is due to his memory to say, that his effort to secure the 

D of ni\- soul, though not crowned with iinmedi- 

. was nevertheless the first link in the chain of 

providential circumstances that led me ultimately to the 

foot of the cross, to a personal consecration of my life to 

Christ, and to a ministry of the word among seamen. 

hold how great a matter a little fire kindleth !" 

t no man despise the day of small things." What 

encouragement does God offer to faithful w r orkers, " to 

I their bread upon the waters/ 1 and how often do we 

the fulfilment of his promises, in its return " after 

many 

After leaving the "Harkaway," I again took up my 

abode in a i urn-shop in Water street, and lived a life 

corresponding with my surroundings. My time was di- 

'1 for the few days I remained on shore between the 

theatre, the dance-house, and other places of evil resort. 

But I was not satisfied to go to hell alone. The 

third officer of the M Harkaway " had been impressed by 

theteacl d captain, and had gone to the 

rs' Home to board. I determined that he should 

, and therefore led him into such com- 

pt Under my tuition he soon lost all seri- 

ions. Instead of the prayer-meeting, to 



AWAKENING. 37 

which he intended to go, I took him to the theatre. In 
a day or two we separated, but not until I had led him 
as deep into the gall of bitterness as myself. 

I then shipped in a brig called the " Billow/' bound to 
La Rochelle, on the coast of France. We were about 
midway of the Atlantic, when, on a beautiful Sabbath 
morning, it pleased our Divine Lord to arrest my atten- 
tion again. One of my shipmates, while overhauling 
his chest, threw out of it a couple of tracts, saying, as 
he did so, " See what a fellow gave me in New York." 
The little messengers fell at my feet I picked them up 
and began to read. One was the " Swearer's Prayer/' or 
" the Oath Explained," and the other, the " Seaman's 
Chart." The Swearer's Prayer went through me like an 
electric shock. I trembled from head to foot. I saw 
my soul in great peril. I never had realized that I 
had been praying for years that God would " not only 
shut me out from heaven, but also shut me up in hell." 
Never before did I see that my oaths, which were 
blurted out on every occasion, and with almost 
every breath, were prayers to God. I was thrilled with 
horror for myself and for my shipmates. I turned 
to them and said : " If this tract is true, we are all in a 
fearful condition." They all laughed at me, and turned 
what I said into ridicule. " Ha ! ha ! " said one, 
" Jones is religious !" This I did not admit, and yet in 
my heart I wished it were true. I w r as distressed and 
anxious for the safety of my immortal soul. What if 
G jd should answer my prayer ? How often I had pray- 
ed, " I hope God will strike me dead," and called upon 
him to damn my soul. What if he should now take me 
at my word ! I felt that something must be done ; but 



1I1TY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

lid not know. I began to rcac! my long neglected 
Bible and to reprove my shipmates for their profanity. 
however only brought me more determined opposi- 
tion. I was indeed alone. What would I have given at 
that moment to have had some one to guide me in the 
t way. It seemed as if my burden was greater than I 
could bear. 

That Sabbath was a long day. Night however came 
at last, but it brought no relief to me. I was crushed 
under the sense of the greatness of my sin. I tossed in 
my bed, while others slept. I cursed and prayed, and 
prayed and cursed alternately. I swore I would drink 
more, and prayed God would strike me dead if I ever 
touched it. I had the middle watch that night. The cap- 
tain, in whose watch I was, came on deck at twelve o'clock. 
My watchmate had taken the wheel and I the lookout 
(there were but two of us in the watch). After scanning 
the heavens a few moments the captain called me aft and 
said, as he turned to go down the companion way, 
': iridic, keep a good lookout for the brig, and call me 
if there is any change." I answered " aye-aye, sir," and 
lie returned to his cabin, leaving me in charge of the 
is now free from all human eyes, and felt I 
ood opportunity to pray. I had learned that if 
any I God, in Christ's name, and for his sake, 

I to hear. I resolved to ask him to for- 
But a difficulty arose. I was too wicked ; He 
•ild not hear me. I had sinned against light and 
and he could not forgive me and be true to 
word. I found that I had in my own heart an 
my I had not dreamed of before. My pride rose up 
and forbade my kneeling even to God. I had to battle 



AWAKENING. 39 

with myself half an hour before I could consent to 
bend the knee. Even then I compromised the matter by 
kneeling on a spare spar, instead of getting down upon 
the deck. I then and there poured out my soul in sup- 
plication to God, for the pardon of my sins, in the name 
of Christ, as my Sunday-school teacher had taught me 
years before. I arose, somewhat calmed in my mind, 
and resolved to do better in the future. But I did not 
go to the throne of grace again — I was going to do it all 
myself. Had I not resolved ? Was that not sufficient ? 

I continued to be the target for the shafts of contempt 
and ridicule hurled at me daily by my shipmates. 
It need not be wondered at, then, as my heart was but 
partially subdued, that after two or three days of hope- 
less resistance in my own strength, I fell back into 
my old ways, and my heart resumed its wonted hardness. 
All my good resolutions to abstain from drink were 
abandoned. The very first evening ashore, at La 
Rochelle, notwithstanding all my oaths, I gave way 
again to the temptation to drink. In the midst of my 
indulgence, however, I was filled with terror. I trem- 
bled, as I remembered the fearful oath I had taken. 
Having swallowed the brandy, I stood still, waiting to be 
struck dead. After a second or two, I drew a long 
breath, and said, " It is all over." My shipmates asked, 
u What is all over ?" I replied, " O, never mind, go 
ahead." And then plunged with an utter recklessness 
into the most fearful orgies of my whole life. 

I lived two weeks in that condition, scarcely daring to 
become sober, lest conscience should wake up and assert 
its power. Those were the darkest days of my dark 
life. I expected death to come and prevent me from the 



40 FIFTY YEARS AMONG sailors. 

n of God's holy law. But death came 

, and I felt that there was nothing for me to do but 
I, and fill up the cup of wrath, as I thought I had 

a* on the road to hell to be recalled. The 

in Matthew xii. 43, 44, was in a measure fulfilled 

in m the unclean spirit returned with seven others 

5< than himself." 

Just as we were ready to sail, I began to reflect, and 

make resolves for the future. But, alas ! resolves made 

be broken again and again. O, how true it is, 

that " the heart is deceitful above all things, and des- 

cly wicked." Who can sound the depths of this 

shoreless, fathomless gulf of iniquity ? 

m La Rochclle we sailed for Boston. On this pas- 
■ my mind was torn to pieces. I was in constant fear 
lest God should cut me down in my sins. I made 
lutions, in my own strength, for the next 
. but God showed me that my strength was weak- 
id my wisdom folly. On reaching Boston, I 
ly mind to go to a Sailors' Home. But 
mate by taking a parting glass, I went 
with him to a rum-shop, was induced to take up 
my there, and as a result, spent all my wages, 

and all : nee pa)-. I left again in debt (as usual), 

taking with me as a sea-stock, a gallon of gin, and two 
pounds of tobacco. I was bound to Malaga, in the brig 
a. On the voyage I began to think 
of my future, and resolved to do some- 
thing toward bettering my condition. Other men, cspe- 
d at sailors' homes, were comfortably 
— itute. The contrast, to me, was very 

ful. 1 had worked hard for more than nine years, 



AWAKENING. 4 1 

and had nothing to show for it. I heard others speak of 
home and friends, but mine were thousands of miles 
away, and there was little probability of my ever seeing 
them again. I had separated myself from them by my 
own bad conduct, and could not hope to reach them 
while in the course I was then pursuing. What seemed 
worst of all, however, was that my shipmates could lie 
down, and as far as I could judge, sleep soundly and 
comfortably, while my mind was tortured with fears of 
death and hell. When they were sleeping in their watch 
below, I was weeping over my sins, and trying to pray. 
But alas ! I could not pray. My mind, even in the 
midst of my tears, was filled with cursing and blasphe- 
mies. When engaged in ship's duty, my waking thoughts 
were occupied with other matters. But on going below 
to rest, I was again troubled about my soul. To quiet 
my conscience I again brought up my Bible from the 
bottom of my chest, where, by a sort of strange fatality, I 
was sure to find it when I needed its counsel. These 
frequent convictions set me upon trying to do something 
to make myself better. Like every poor sinner, when 
convicted of sin and danger, I wanted to purchase with 
good works what God has said every one must receive 
" without money and without price." I read in the word 
of God, " Is any among you afflicted ? Let him pray. 
Is any merry ? let him sing psalms." I therefore 
brought out my Prayer-book and committed to memory 
the one hundreth psalm. 

I was very fond of singing songs. I now substituted 
in their stead this psalm, which I sang with tears in my 
eyes, and sorrow in my heart. But I did not thus 
make myself acceptable to God. My heart was like 



4J FIFTY VEARS AMONG SAILORS, 

1. Finding no benefit from this mode of 
new resolves to board at the Sailors' 
:v return to Boston, thinking that if I lived 
with well dressed people I should be ashamed to 
differently from them. In short, I desired to effect a 
change in my ways, yet could not let go the world. 
too 1 found to be vanity and vexation of spirit. 
the ninth of January, 1841, the Lord brought me 
ely to Boston. As soon as the vessel was fast 
le of the wharf, I took my chest over to the Sail- 
ors' I [ome, on Fort Hill. The Home looked as if it was 
too respectable a place for men like myself to live in. 
and it would have taken but little to have turned me 
away from the door. Yet here I was, by the mercy of 
Jit of port. I took courage, rang the beli, 
I waited the issue. The keeper, Captain Joshua 
"urn, himself a converted sailor, opened the door. It 
.in unpretentious dwelling-house, and looked more 
home-like than anything I had seen for years. As soon, 
red I apologized for coming to seek a home 
there, and thought 1 must at least give a reason for my 
n ; so 1 said, " 1 would like to board here 
Id, and I will tell you why. I have boarded 
in rum-holes until my dunnage is gone, and my wages 
all spent in drunkenness and debaucheries. I have 
'•fore that if I could get here I might escape 
and better my condition." lie replied, 
a are just the man we want. Walk in, sir." 
r ?* I thought to myself; how long is it since I 
die to my name? Captain Buffum led 
me into the r 1, and told me to sit there 

a mom< nt and he would show me my room. I 



AWAKENING. 43 

came to an anchor as close by the door as I could get, 
and began to reconnoitre. My first conclusion, after 
glancing around the room at the boarders, was, that I 
had no business there unless I could be as respectable in 
appearance. At that time I had not a jacket to my 
back. I had sold my last one in Savannah for rum 
- — my only pants were split across the knee, and my 
wardrobe generally was of little worth. I made new 
resolutions. First, I would be a sober man, and sec- 
ondly I would spend my money in procuring better 
clothing. Such resolutions were kept only until some 
one tempted me to break them. One resolve, to abstain 
from drink, I kept a whole hour — another, five days; 
but on the sixth day a woman urged me to take some 
cordial, and I had not the moral courage to say no. 
O, that women knew the power for good they might have 
over the mind of the sailor ! 

It may appear strange that I should so often deter- 
mine to do good and avoid evil, and yet so often fail. 
The secret is not far to find. I did not see it then as I 
see it now. I visited the theatre, dance-house, cir- 
cus and bar-rooms. I was continually in the whirlpool 
of temptation. If I was drawn into the vortex, would it 
have been a miracle ? When I attempted to carry out 
my purpose of amendment, I became the butt of my 
companions, who jeered at my weak efforts. In fact I 
could not stand without divine assistance, and that I 
ignored. Breaking my resolutions from time to time, 
only left me weaker than before. I began to feel that it 
was useless to make any. further attempts at reform, as 
it was but a system of lying, at best. Having reached 
this conclusion, my conscientious scruples were relaxed. 



44 FIFTY \ EARS AMONG SAILORS. 

1 - i ting the evil and seeking help from above, 

and ran before it. My insatia- 
ble thirst led me to break away from all barriers and re- 
. and to resolve that resistance was useless. I 

mus( I the inevitable, and never attempt to do 

good any more. 

With this insane purpose, I made what seemed to me 
the final plunge into ruin. I became furious and reck- 
, roamed the streets on Saturday night like a mad- 
man, seeking for some dance-house where I could gratify 
my cravings for unnatural excitement. From such a 
place I reeled home after midnight, and on the Sabbath 
morning was out early to renew my debauch. But the 
liquor stores were closed until after church time, and as 
it was snowing hard, I went back to the Home, farther 
from God than ever before, as I supposed. But, O, the 
reign mercy of God ! " How unsearchable are his 
judgments, and his ways past finding out." " Truly his 
re not our ways, nor his thoughts our thoughts," 
he had left me to fill up the cup of wrath against the 
d, who is rich in mercy," dealt not 
with me as I deserved. To me, the darkest hour had 
indeed come. But it was the dark that immediately 
precedes the dawn. 

It will be remembered that I landed in Boston on the 

9th .bbath day was the i/th. With 

n of the Sabbath of the ioth, on which day 

" Father Taylor" preach, and was pricked to 

the heart, because I could find in myself no witness for 

the interval had been spent in revellings and 

drunkenness. The theatre was preferred to the prayer 

Sabbath clay found me as reckless 



AWAKENING. 45 

and impenitent as before. But 0, the depth of mercy, 
boundless compassion, undying love ! Christ sent his 
servant with another invitation. 

Captain Buffum, at about ten o'clock, came into the 
reading-room and asked who would go to church with 
him. The men generally responded, rose, and went. 
I sat still, watching the snow-flakes beat against the win- 
dow. After closing the door, and going out with the 
men, the captain came back again, and in a pleasant and 
kind tone, said to me, " Come along, Charlie." But as I 
have before me a letter from my friend of 1841 — who is 
now a minister of the Gospel — under the date of January 
8th, 1880, I will let him tell the story. He says: 

' ' I was in Salem, my native place, some weeks ago, and had an 
opportunity to preach in the Bethel church. I related the circum- 
stance of my early acquaintance with you, and what had grown 
out of it ; and I spoke of a phase of that matter which has always 
impressed me very much, namely, the importance of what we 
call "trifles/' But no events, however small, are trifles in the 
sight of God. Do you remember the auspicious day when you 
went, at my invitation, to church, and heard from the lips of 
the Rev. D. M. Lord, the words : ' Thus saith the Lord of hosts, 
Consider your ways' ? Well, if you remember, when I asked 
you to go church, you at first declined, and I went out, closing 
both doors behind me, and then of a sudden impulse, without 
one serious reflection, I went back, and said to you, ' Charlie, 
come along f and up you got, and went with me to church. 
Now see ! how much depended on that comparatively trivial 
circumstance of my going back to you a second time. Yet how 
much has grown out of it, and how many souls have been born 
to God through your ministrations for so many years, and all 
turning on that point that looked so small and inconsequen- 
tial. Nothing is trifling to God. Out of the merest incident, 
God is able to bring, and often does bring forth stupendous re- 



46 I V YEARS am< >NG SAILORS. 

I always has been an impressive lesson to me. 
ide use of it in my preaching." 

remember that I consented rather reluctantly, 
adding, " I might as well go there as anywhere else, to 

the time away until noon." 

far, however, from simply passing the time away, 
the good Lord that day, taught me that the true 
value of time is to prepare for eternity. The text 
>m the prophecy of Haggai, i. 5 : " Now 
therefore, thus saith the Lord of Hosts, Consider 
I heeded the sermon but little, until the 
tker addressed sailors in particular. Then my 
s and ears and mouth were opened at once, as if 
the message was for me. So graphically was the peril- 
ous condition of the sinner described, and the danger of 
his ways, that the truth pierced my heart. The arrows 
the Almighty drank up my spirit. Wounds were 
le that day for which I found no healing balm until 
lit comfort to my soul by his peace-speaking 
blood. When I felt the pains of hell get hold of me, I 
attentively for the remedy, and heard that the 
only way of peace was to give my heart and soul to 
rist without reserve and without delay. I thought 
, and went in the afternoon 
tin, hoping to find some way in which 
I might be without so wholesale a concession. 

y could I not - d and be good without so 

r of the world ? To give up all plea- 
sure, I thou great a sacrifice. My shipmates 
[lattgh at the idea I should be isolated, cut off 
m their com; lip. All these objections were 



AWAKENING. 47 

set before me in their liveliest colors by the enemy of 
my soul 

In the evening, at the monthly concert of prayer, the 
pastor read letters from pious seamen who had been con- 
verted under his preaching. They affected me very 
much. I longed to feel as the writers expressed them- 
selves as feeling. New sensations crowded in upon me. 
I was filled with a sense of my own absolute nothing- 
ness ; I saw myself a lost soul, ruined, guilty, depraved. 
I had no words to describe my wickedness. I felt that 
there could be nothing for a rebel like me but the black- 
ness of darkness forever. If anything was wanting to 
convince me of the long-suffering and forbearing mercy 
of the Lord toward my guilty soul, it was provided in 
the scene which followed the reading of the letters. I 
saw with surprise several well-dressed and respectable 
seamen rise, in different parts of the house, and declare 
their allegiance to the King of kings, and claim him as 
the Lord their righteousness. They told of the deliver- 
ance from hell and the grave through the merits of Jesus 
Christ their Redeemer. They spoke of joy arising from 
a sense of pardoned sin, and peace experienced under 
the sheltering wings of the Almighty. 

Here new wonders burst upon my soul. I shrunk 
from myself. I wanted to look up, but I dared not. A 
mountain of sin crushed me down. A sailor pious ? 
It could not be. How could he live in the forecastle but 
as the result of a perpetual miracle ? I loathed myself. 
The terrors of the violated law appalled me. I saw my- 
self guilty, condemned, hell-deserving, and acknowledged 
the sentence that condemned mejust. 

As soon as the services were over, I returned to the 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

Home and crept to my bed, almost in despair. I 
re retiring, but the fear of man prov- 
. and prevented me. Willingly would I have 
my soul with promises for the future, but con- 
QCe reminded me of too many unfulfilled promises, too 
ny vain resolutions, too many futile efforts, too many 
broken vows already ; and that promises for the future 
ild not condone the past. I would have slept, but I 
could not I tried to banish all thought of the past and 
future, but my convictions of sin set all peace and rest at 
ance. In the darkness of that sleepless night, while 
ring untold agonies of guilt, while the mountains of 
sins towered upward to heaven, and hid God's face 
from me, the tempter came to goad my already burden- 
ed conscience by suggesting " You are too late now." 
O, how often before he had told me it was too soon to 
these things ! Now he tells me, " You are too 
late ; you have sinned away your day of grace, to pray 
is us less. You cannot be forgiven." All this I was only 
too well inclined to believe. I called to mind the prof- 
fered mercies neglected, the invitations of grace rejected, 
the prayer-meeting given up that I might enjoy the 
itre : and I felt that all these things were against me. 
notwithstanding all, I desired to serve God with 
all my heart, and I resolved to begin life with the new 
day. 

ted a friend to call me early in the morning, 

that I might b nt at the family worship. He 

Called : I lylight I went down at once to 

room, and as I entered, noticed an open 

tble and a lighted candle standing beside 

it. I thought, as my eye All on the open page, 



AWAKENING. 49 

was, " Perhaps some passage in that good book may bring 
peace to my soul." I walked up to it, and read these 
words : " Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me ? It is 
hard for thee to kick against the pricks." I burst into 
tears and felt truly it is hard. I turned to my friend, who 
had called me, and said, " I am in a fearful condition, and 
unless the same power that converted Saul, shall have 
mercy upon me, I am lost forever." He tried to comfort 
me by pointing to the " Lamb of God that taketh away 
the sin of the world." But my will was not yet fully 
subdued. The wound was not so deep, nor my case so 
desperate as to lead me to the great Physician. 

I attended worship, and while Mr. Buffum was praying, 
I gave way to convulsive weeping. Fearing the men 
would notice me, and being ashamed of my weakness, I 
swallowed my breakfast and rushed out of the house, 
hoping that other scenes would bring some change of 
feeling, alleviate my pains, and quench the fires that were 
burning in my spirit. Just as well might I have striven 
to fly from myself and seek annihilation, as to fly from 
either the spirit or presence of God. After leaving the 
house I steered for the wharves and strolled about among 
the shipping, without any fixed purpose. I had not gone 
far when a hand was laid upon my shoulder. I turned 
to see who addressed nte, and found it was one of the 
boarders of the Home. He said, " Charlie, what do you 
say for New Orleans?" I responded, " Anywhere, to 
get out of this." "Well," said he, "come along. The 
1 Birmingham/ a Bath ship, wants eight hands before the 
mast. Let us ship." I agreed — shipped, and went back 
to the Home for my dunnage. 

On my way back I began to reflect on what I had done, 
3 



50 FIFTY Yi \Ks AMONG sailors. 

and to think of my poor dear mother. To me she repre- 
ted " all hands " in the family fleet. Mother meant 
home, and all it contained. I had been away three 
ind had seldom written. Home claims now pre- 
ted themselves for recognition. So I sat down and 
wrote a long letter, in which I remember acknowledging 
that " the way oi~ the transgressor is hard." I had 
trong presentiment that I should be lost in that vessel. 
Yet I had no idea of leaving her, for I felt that I richly 
rved all that the Lord could inflict. I resolved there- 
fore that my mother should know what had become of me. 
While writing, my mind was racked with fears of deadi 
and judgment. I went into the office of the landlord 
and gave him the address of my mother, requesting him 
to inquire for my effects when the vessel reached New 
( Orleans, and send them with my wages to her. So 
strongly was I convinced that the Lord would not spare 
me any longer. 

He promised to comply with my request if I should 
arrive with the ship. After eyeing me for a moment 
with apparent concern, he rose and left the office, beck- 
ie to follow him to mother room. With mingled 
r and shame, I accompanied him. I was afraid he 
noticed my emotion, and I was ashamed of my 
D weakness ; but I might well have laid both aside. 
He spoke to me very kindly, and asked me if I was not 
icerned for the salvation of my soul ? I told him I was, 
id while he described the misery of a soul cut 
from Christ I wept bitterly. I thought my very heart 
rief when I saw myself in the con- 
dition of an ur f do not remember that I 

fore. I was a great sinner 



AWAKENING. 5 1 

in the presence of the angry Judge. The sword of justice 
seemed suspended over my head by a single hair. I was 
lost ! lost ! forever ! The thunders of Sinai seemed 
ready to burst on my devoted head. I believed and 
trembled. 

But my friend was ready to apply a healing balm to 
my wounded spirit, and to point me to the Great 
Physician, who alone could relieve my distress. He told 
me of the forgiving love of Jesus, of his unwillingness 
that any should perish ; of his desire that all might par- 
take of eternal life, and of the sacrifice he had made to 
secure the desired end. These truths, beautiful and 
comforting as they are, threw but a momentary gleam 
over my dark soul. He is a great Saviour, but can He 
save me ? I had sinned against light and knowledge. 
I was not ignorant, as many were. I knew the right, and 
had pursued the wrong all my life. Could He, would 
He save me ? O, the agony of that moment ! That 
gleam of light revealed me to myself as I had never seen 
myself before. It made the darkness of my life visible. 
It exposed my hidden corruptions. I shrank from 
myself — how much more would a holy God shrink from 
me ! I did not yet see any efficacy in the blood of 
Christ to wash out my stains. How could he forgive 
so vile a creature — a fit object for divine wrath ! I 
had slighted the sure mercies of God in Jesus Christ, and 
was now even only grasping for that which was forever 
beyond my reach. I had sinned against his most holy 
law for twenty-three years. Would he now condescend 
to return and love me freely ? Was his anger indeed 
turned away ? Yes ! 

My friend told mc "The blood of Jesus Christ cleans- 



FIFTY VKARS \ > ULORS. 

from all sin." Said he, " I sinned against God for 
thirty years and he forgave me. He is willing and ready 
to I you now." He told me, moreover, how he 

carried Christ in the ship, and was enabled by his 
presence to endure the jeers and scoffs of ungodly ship- 
mate-. His experiences inspired me with courage. A 
ray of hope at last dawned upon my soul. Perhaps he 
will accept my plea, perhaps will hear my prayer ! O, 
how I would delight to serve such a Master, if he would 
Only accept my poor services ! If only I might sit at 
his feet ! 

Observing some indications of the change which 
was passing over my mind, my faithful friend urged 
:i me the necessity of making Christ my confidant, 
and telling him all my sorrows and sins. He exhorted 
me to seek counsel of him at all times, to open to him the 
secrets of my very soul, to seek wisdom from him in all 
things, whether temporal or eternal, to study the Scrip- 
tures, to drink from the sacred fount itself: assuring me 
that He, my Lord, would never leave me, nor for- 
sake me. Before that conference broke up, I had 
»lvcd to seek the Lord, and to strive to serve 
1 with all my heart. Had He not given Himself for 
Could I do less than give myself to him ? 
Inst tiling, as we expected, on the afternoon of 

Monday, the " Birmingham/ 1 was delayed until the 
As I «ras leaving the house on Tuesday 
; to go on board my ship, I felt very sad, bj- 
turning my back on Christian privile 
and untri -d paths. 1 was resolved 

to li God, CD012 whit would; and therefore ac- 

cepted with s given me by my good 



AWAKENING. 53 

brother Bufifum. The Pilgrim's Progress I had a desire 
to read, and this he gave me, with a small volume called 
"The Christian's Daily Food.' , This last he begged me 
to read whenever I found an opportunity. " But above 
all," said he, " seek Christ, the sinner's friend — and 
take my advice, hoist your colors as soon as you go on 
board, and let your shipmates know that you intend to 
fight under his banner.'' He added, " Keep this little 
book in your bosom. You will find in it passages of 
scripture. When you have a spare moment, read some 
of them; they will help to keep your thoughts on God, 
and at the same time banish evil from your mind." 

A few moments after receiving this counsel, I left the 
house to go on board, with a bundle of clothing under 
my arm, and a pair of sea-boots in my hand. But, 
w r hen only a few yards from the door, I dropped my 
bundle and boots and ran back to ask the friends I was 
leaving, to pray for me when they met at evening pray- 
er-meetings, that I might prove faithful to my new Mas- 
ter, that I might be a bright and shining light to my ship- 
mates, and be finally saved through Christ my Redeem- 
er. I felt I was leaving my home. Had it not been a 
sailor's home indeed to my soul ? Was it not my birth 
place unto righteousness ? I went away encouraged by 
the promises of a good brother to hold me up in their 
prayers. In about twenty minutes I was on board my 
ship and ready for duty. The crew were ordered to get 
breakfast, and I went below with them, thinking it was 
better to begin my Master's work at once, and let them 
know I was on the Lord's side, instead of leaving it un- 
til the ship was out at sea. 



CHAPTER III. 

CONVERSION AND COLLEGE LIFE. 

The Bible in the forecastle — My ensign a-peak — My eyes opened — Con- 
secration to Christ — Man overboard — Prayer at the topmast-head — 
lis and conflicts— Missionary effort — In the army of tfie Lord — 
r " Roanoke " — Ship to pray — Santa Cruz — Christian sailors a 
Curiosity — First idea of the ministry — The way open — Joy unspeakable 
— Schooner's crew — Rum jug — New experience — Wicked resolutions — 
Fatal result — Sole survivor — Brig " Delight " — Happy change— Under 
care of Presbytery — Student life — College prayer-meetings. 

As soon as I had shifted my dunnage and put my 
bunk in order, I took from my chest my long-neglected 
and long-buried Bible, determined that it should be 
no more an unread book. I sat on my chest and began 
at the first chapter of Genesis, reading to myself, but by 
no means unnoticed. I need not say here that I was 
laughed at for so singular an act. The very fact of my 
l Bible was sufficient to bring upon me the 
contempt of the silly and godless ones ; but to dare to 
1 it in the presence of such men, and in the forccas- 
too I was to expose myself to their derision. But, 
1 rod ! the clay in which a blaspheming ship- 
mate could drive me from the word of God, had already 
I felt that their opposition would not 
hurt me, while the living God was my friend. I was 

54 



CONVERSION. 55 

now identified fully with his cause and knew what I was 
to expect. 

I asked divine help in that crisis, for it was a crisis in 
my life, on which depended my all for time and eternity. 
If I should be driven from my ground now, I need 
never expect to recover it again in that ship. I did not 
wait long for the first broadside from the enemy. But 
my own guns were now run out, and trained, and my 
Great Captain was by to give courage and precision. 

I will state here, for the better understanding of the 
position, that, with the exception of one man (he who 
had put his hand on my shoulder and proposed my ship- 
ping with him), the entire crew were strangers to me. 
We therefore knew nothing of the weight or range of 
each other's metal. The first acts on both sides were 
necessarily tentative. The first fire was evidently in- 
tended to draw mine. It was well aimed, but fell a little 
short of its purpose. I heard the whistle of the shot across 
my bows, and it said, " Helloa : are you religious ?" 
The accent on the last word was such as to show that 
the question was not altogether friendly, It conveyed a 
slight tone of bitterness, but it brought my ensign to the 
peak. I replied with blank cartridge, having only the 
kindness and pity of the Master in my heart, and desir- 
ous of avoiding pain. " No," said I, " I am not relig- 
ious, but — (without a pause) — by the grace of God I 
mean to be a Christian. I have served the devil for 
twenty-three years, and found him a hard master. I 
fought ' long and well ' for him, with a zeal worthy of a 
better cause. Now I mean to serve God, if he will be 
my helper." My shipmates smiled derisively, as though 
in doubt as to my stability or strength of purpose, and 



56 FIFTY YEARS among sailors. 

0, that is all right if you can stick to it." I re- 
plied, M God helping me, here's stick to it ! ,? 

rtlv after this conversation we were all engaged in 
clearing Up the decks and getting ready for sea. I had 
coiled up the running gear on the quarter-deck, and was 
for a moment unoccupied. I thought of my little book, 
44 1 >aily Food," and took it out of my shirt bosom to 
Lge. On finding the pages marked with the 
- of the month, I turned back to see what portion 
wis selected for that day, the 19th of January, and 
found these words : surely they were written for me : 
44 If any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, 
Jesus Christ the righteous. And he is the propitiation for 
our sins ; and not for ours only, but also for the sins of 
the whole world" (1 John ii. 1, 2). Beneath the scripture 
were these lines : 

" He ever lives to intercede 
Before his Father's face ; 
Give him, my soul, thy cause to plead, 
r doubt a Father's grace. " 

Here my eyes were opened. A mystery was explained. 
I had been doubting a Father's grace, and had been plead- 
ing my own cause, instead of putting my soul fully into 
the hands of the great Advocate. I saw myself guilty 
of two evils, and resolved to avoid them hereafter. I 
went immediately forward. The time for the one con- 
secrating act of my life was now come. Passing down 
into the between decks I crawled in among some bales 
of cargo, knelt down on the deck, leaning my head 
of the stanchions just abaft the forecastle 
bulkhead, an myself to Jesus; saying, "O Lord 

Jesus, I am .1 great sinner; and if I must perish, as I dc- 



CONSECRATION. 57 

serve to perish, let me perish where no man ever did 
perish, at the foot of the cross, pleading for mercy." 

At the close of this prayer there came over me a sweet 
feeling of confidence. I had no great joy, but a feeling 
of relief from past anxieties, somewhat as a captain who 
has been on a dangerous coast and without sleep for two 
or three nights, resigns his vessel into the hands of the 
pilot, and goes below, with a sense of security not felt 
before. I arose from my knees and resumed my duty 
with more hopefulness than ever I had felt before. I 
could now realize the meaning of the words of the hymn, 

" Tis done — the great transaction 's done ; 
I am the Lord's and he is mine." 

There was a sweet comfort in the assurance. I 
breathed more freely, believing now fully, that God 
would, for Christ's sake, have mercy on my sin-polluted 
and heavily burdened soul. Now that the great God had 
smiled upon me, I determined to serve him with all the 
energies of my soul, or perish in trying. I embraced 
every opportunity I could get, without neglecting my 
duty, to go to my Bethel and pour out my soul to God 
for his guidance and support. We left the wharf about 
eleven, A. M., and with a strong north-wester, by night 
we were well clear of the land. The watches were 
chosen and set. I fell to the chief mate. While walk- 
ing the deck with my watchmates, I found their conver- 
sation was such as I could now take no part in. I 
broached the subject of religion, and was told for my en- 
couragement that I should surely become a hypocrite. 
While I could not accept their conclusions, I nevertheless 
had some fears lest there might be truth in their pre- 
3* 



58 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

dictions. I knew there was but one who could save me 
from such a result, and I clung to Him with increasing 
fervor 

Two days after leaving port, we lost a man overboard. 

I went aloft to try to keep him in view if possible, while 

the boat was pulling after him. But he was not to be 

i ; and my eyes were so blinded with tears that I 

could sc at all. I then and there, at the mizzen- 

I head, cried aloud unto God, fearing that I might 

be the next, and praying that if he should please to take 

me in that way, he would prepare me for a dwelling at 

his right hand. I now mad^ away with all cards, dice, 

novels, song- books, dream-books, and intoxicating 

drinks, and prayed that the temptations to either of them 

it be kept from me. My soul yearned for the souls 

of in\' shipmates, and I turned my attention to their 

instruction in divine things. I longed for their conver- 

i ; I plead with them, and they persecuted me. 

of t!ie crew only paid any attention. He promised 
to abandon his sins, and live for the Saviour. We were 
1 together heavenward. We prayed together. 
rcely had we turned our backs on the " City of 
," when he fell into the " Slough of Despond," 
^erncss to return, came very near ruining me. 
But by the grace of God I pushed on alone. I warned 
him of his backsliding, and he declared that he had com- 
mitted the sin against the Holy Ghost, and therefore it was 
impossible for him to be saved. I continued, however, 
what I could in my weakness. I gathered my 
shipmates on the Sabbath, in the forecastle, and read to 
them tracts and good books. Some of them listened 
ntively and reverently, and some cursed me for read- 



CONVERSION. 59 

ing what they called " Christ-killing tracts," expressing 
the fear that the ship would be carried to heaven in 
a hurry. The good ship, however, sped on her course, 
keeping to her watery way notwithstanding, while each 
day brought new cursings and slanderings on account of 
my religion. When reading my Bible, some would come 
and sit beside me and sing ribald songs, or relate some 
obscene story, to draw me away from the Word of God. 

In order to study the Word in peace, I resorted to an 
original mode of keeping the precious truth before me, 
while they were off their guard. I wrote with the point 
of my knife, passages of Scripture from the Psalms, all 
over my tin pot, and plate, and spoon, and so was 
enabled to feed body and soul at the same time. We 
were forty-four days on the passage, and before reaching 
New Orleans I had several severe trials and conflicts to 
pass through ; but by the covenant love of my Saviour, 
I was brought out of them all, more than conqueror, 
through "Him that loved me and gave Himself for me." 
My firmness in the right, and my steady devotion to my 
duty, gained for me the friendship of the entire crew and 
officers ; so that when the vessel was discharged and I 
was about to leave her, they all expressed their reluct- 
ance in parting with me, and even those who had been 
most inimical to my Christian efforts, bade me God 
speed. 

In New Orleans I found many of the dear people of 
God, who proffered the hand of Christian fellowship, and 
who gave me such assistance on my heavenly way, as I at 
that time so much needed. After leaving the ship I took up 
my abode at the Sailors' Home. In my intercourse with 
the people of God here, I gained strength, and had new 



6o FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

of the value and preciousness of my new 
are. Here I was encouraged to take part in the 
public services of religion, and to open my mouth for the 
Lord*' Here too, I met with some who have been 
friends and faithful brethren in the Lord ever since. 
I (bund here, also, many opportunities of doing good, going 
from ship to ship, with tracts, and speaking with men 
I met in the streets and on the levee. I have reason to 
know that sonic of the precious seed here sown brought 
forth plentifully after many years. My initial experience 
in this city and some of the lessons I here learned, have 
not been without their salutary effect on my after life. I 
became acquainted here with two pious seamen, with 
whom, after rolling cotton on the levee for a time, I ship- 
ped in the ship "Cumberland," of Boston, bound to Phila- 
delphia. We had been on board but a few days before 
the Lord brought one of our shipmates to himself in pen- 
itence and faith. He afterwards, with myself, became 
a part of the schooner's crew, mentioned elsewhere. 

board of this vessel we held meetings regularly in 
the house on deck, every morning and evening, and 
prayer- meetings on Thursday and Sabbath evenings, at 
which officers and passengers attended, as well as 
the crew. As a result of these services the second mate 
converted, and has been up to this day a devoted 
Christian, and a useful man in the M. E. Church. 

the 1 6th of May we reached Philadelphia, where 

we were received with open arms and full hearts by the 

. Orson Douglass and his church members. On the 

of May, three of my shipmates and myself entered 

into a covenant with the Lord by uniting with the 

f 1 Kastburn Mariners 1 Church." Here I assumed for my- 



CONVERSION. 6l 

self the vows made for me by my parents at my baptism, 
viz., " to renounce the devil and all his works, the pomps 
and vanities of this wicked world." Here too I sat down 
for the first time, at the table of the Lord. It was a sea- 
son of great joy to my soul. " He brought me to the ban- 
queting house, and his banner over me was love." " 1 sat 
down under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was 
sweet to my taste." I was now enrolled in the army of the 
Lord, henceforth to be recognized openly as one of his de- 
voted servants and followers. A blessed work was inau- 
gurated here by our pastor, Rev. O. Douglass ; a work in 
which we all took part, namely, open-air preaching, and 
addresses from ships, at the wharves. Large numbers 
of people heard the Word, and not a few were converted 
and saved. I also addressed the seamen of the Navy in 
the U. S. Receiving Ship, by invitation. Some of these 
men were anxious about their souls' salvation. Our pas- 
tor set us all at work, and as the interest spread we were 
invited to visit the churches of the city, and speak in 
behalf of the moral interests of our brethren of the sea. 
By these means an impetus was given to the seamen's 
cause in Philadelphia, which is operative to this day. 

On the 2nd of June, I shipped, together with four 
others of the Cumberland's crew, on board the schooner 
" Roanoke," bound for Santa Cruz. The peculiar fea- 
ture of this transaction was that we shipped to pray. 
Two of the men before the mast and myself were 
church-members. The other two agreed with us to 
meet daily, morning and evening, to ask God's blessing 
upon our vessel and crew. On that voyage there was 
neither cursing nor rum-drinking in the forecastle. I 
cannot say as much for the other end of her. The cap- 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

tain and mate would occasionally give way to a burst of 
profanity. The captain having one day ripped out an 
., turned to the Christian sailor at the wheel, and 
apologizing for having offended his ears with blasphemy, 
said, "John, I have been enabled to knock off swearing 
you men came on board, and I hope to be 
entirely cured of it before you leave me." As soon as we 
came to an anchor in Santa Cruz, I sought out the church 
and found many of the friends of Christ, who, on learn- 
ing that there were other Christian seamen on board, 
requested me to bring my shipmates ashore. I saw 
then that the Christian sailor was sought rather than 
shunned, and 1 longed for the day when the sons of the 
sea shall be known in all lands as the sons of God. 

One of the planters, a Mr. Stevenson, sent his carriage 
to bring us to his house, and invited us to address his 
slaves. He had converted his still-house into a school- 
room, banished rum from the premises, and had given 
his hundred servants Saturday to themselves, in order 
to dispose of their produce, so that they might keep the 
Sabbath sacred to God. On reaching the plantation, 
on the north side of the island, we found in the planter 
and his wife two devoted Christians. After taking tea 
with them, we were led into a school-room, where the 
ithercd in a Bible class. By the answers 
i questions proposed to them, they gave cvi- 
ce of an acquaintance with the scripture that was cre- 
ble to them is well as to their master. We 

each addressed them, and exhorted them to live for 
Christ and try to meet us in heaven. They were much 
. - 11 r visit 
It was while we were lying at Santa Cruz that I was 



CONVERSION. 63 

first led to think of becoming a minister of the gospel. 
I was enjoying a season of private devotion, when the 
suggestion first entered my mind ; but I was afraid to 
entertain it even for a moment, lest it should have sprung 
from pride or self-esteem. But whatever might hereaf- 
ter appear to be duty, it seemed evident that I could 
not indulge the hope, because I was without the neces- 
sary means. Having squandered my money in riotous 
living, how could I expect to devote myself to so import- 
ant and sacred a work ? Besides, I had no adequate in- 
tellectual fitness ; in short, the office was too high for 
any aspiration of mine. Taking this view of the situa- 
tion, I prayed the Lord that if the thought was not from 
him he would strangle it in its birth On the other hand, 
if he had suggested it, I would humbly look to him to 
provide the means. At all events I resolved that I 
would neither seek it nor shun it ; but that I would offer 
special prayers for guidance and direction in the matter. 
During one of those devotional seasons, while pleading 
for divine aid, I was wonderfully overcome with a sense 
of the abundant mercy of God to me, unworthy as I was, 
and had such a realizing sense of the divine presence 
filling me, and absorbing my whole soul, that on rising 
from my knees I felt assured that I should one day stand 
between the living and the dead, and proclaim the glad 
news of salvation to a lost and ruined world, through 
Jesus Christ the Lord. I continued in special prayer for 
the divine guidance all the passage home to Philadelphia. 
Immediately on our arrival, and before the vessel had 
come to her wharf, I went ashore with the captain, ran 
up to the Sailors' Home to announce our arrival, and 
thence to pay my respects to my pastor at his house. I 



64 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

had not been there more than twenty minutes before 
sufficient was said to indicate to mc that the way was 

prepared for me to enter upon a course of study, with a 
view to the holy ministry. Although I had not opened 
my mouth to a soul on the subject, I learned afterwards, 
that while I was at sea, the Holy Spirit had suggested to 
my pastor ashore the same thoughts that had occupied 
my own mind. He had communicated his plans to 
some of the friends of seamen in the city, especially to 
the lady managers of the Female Seamen's Friend Soci- 
ety, and they had assured him that they would contribute 
to the expense of my education if I should enter upon 
the work. 

I need not say how intensely my soul was filled with 
thanksgiving when the glad news was communicated, 
nor with what eagerness I anticipated the hitherto un- 
expected privilege of consecrating myself, spirit, soul and 
body, to the work of the holy ministry. I was in an ecs- 
tacy of joy. My cup was running over. Now then, fare- 
well, a long farewell to my foster-mother — the sea ! 
Many, many times I had sat on the windlass end in my 
night watches at sea, and sung 

11 Death, whenever he comes to me, 
Must come on — must come on 
The wide and open sea." 

Now, however, all my unsanctificd purposes were 
: turned. I had been "bought with a price. " My 
duty and my pleasure were now to glorify God in my 
body and in my spirit, which are his. Rapturous thought ! 
What language can adequately express it? I — for 
years a poor outcast, a mere waif on life's ocean, drifting 



CHRISTIAN SAILORS. 65 

with the current of worldliness, driven by the strong 
winds of passion, a drunken blasphemer, a child of sin ! 
Yet now, not only a son of God, a joint heir with Christ 
to the heavenly inheritance hereafter, a prince of the 
King of the kings of the earth, but, marvel of marvels ! 
on my way to an appointment to the exalted office of 
an ambassador for Christ ! His representative, to be 
commissioned to persuade men, in His stead, to be recon- 
ciled to God. My wildest imaginings had scarcely 
dared to soar so high. Yet already was the goal in 
sight ! 

As I have spoken so fully of myself, it may be well, 
before leaving this part of my subject, to say a word con- 
cerning the future of my shipmates, who, together with 
myself, composed the crew of the schooner " Roa- 
noke." The captain and mate I lost the run of after 
entering upon my studies. But of the foremast men, I 
may say, one of the unconverted died shortly after I left 
her. Of the two professors in the forecastle, one went 
to Havre, in France, and while there engaged as sexton 
of the American Chapel for seamen, under the pastoral 
care of the Rev. E. N. Sawtell. He has been doing 
missionary work among sailors as colporteur and tract 
distributor for something over thirty-five years. The 
other, after making a few voyages and rising to the po- 
sition of chief officer, left the sea, married, and was 
employed as city missionary, under the auspices of the 
Central Presbyterian Church, of Philadelphia. He after- 
wards became keeper of the Sailors' Home in Front 
Street, where he and his good wife did much faithful 
missionary work for years. Subsequently, failing in 
health, he purchased a farm, and moved into the north- 
5 



66 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

tern extremity of Pennsylvania. Here he cleared a 
tract of woodland, and built himself a home. Look- 
ing round for avenues ol usefulness, he organized a 
Sabbath-school, which under his fostering care, grew in- 
to a Presbyterian church, of which he became an elder. 
Through his faithful labors, a large portion of the com- 
munity were brought under the influence of religion. 
After some years, his yearnings for the sailor brought 
him once more to the seaboard. In New York he took 
charge of the Sailors' Home, became a member of the 
Mariners' Church, under my care, and did efficient work 
among his brethren of the sea. He is, at this writing, 
a successful manufacturer in the city of New York, and 
contributes with a true sailor's liberality of his substance 
to the cause of Christian benevolence. The fourth, who, 
when I left the " Roanoke," was yet " in the gall of bit- 
terness, and in the bonds of iniquity/' found his way into 
the church after a very bitter experience. But I will 
1 t him tell it in his own way. In a letter to me, dated 
January, 1858, he says: 

r old ship ! Nearly eighteen years have glided by since 
and I were sailors before the mast in the ship "Cumber- 
land,** at New Orleans, bound for Philadelphia. I well remember 
the day when I went on hoard that ship, and how I introduced 
myself by opening my rum-jug, and asking all hands to drink. 
But ( ild be found, to help me. I have never 

moral courage you displayed when I offered it to 
• of the cn-w. who were all sober. When I 
and give expression to my indignation, you 
calm!\ reproved me. I ;y at the time, but the lesson I 

neverfoigot At that time I did not believe that there was a man 
wrho did not drink liquor and get drunk sometimes. 
As t i . I did not know anything about that at all. I 



CHRISTIAN SAILORS. 6? 

never heard of the new birth. I never saw a Christian sailor, 
never was inside a sailors' home, before that voyage. But I 
bless God to-day that I ever was a sailor. Especially do I thank 
God that I ever went on board that old ship, where I found the 
first religious sailor I ever saw. Under God, I owe my all to 
the man I am now writing to, and from whom I received the first 
admonition and invitation to come to Christ. O, my brother, 
where will our influence end ? We have to do with the men 
whose home is on the deep ; who, when converted, do not 
become a terror to the missionary in foreign lands, but aid him 
in building up the kingdom of Christ. It must break the heart 
of the man of God, who has labored for years among the heathen, 
to have an ungodly ship's company, of so-called Christian sailors, 
come on shore on the Lord's day, and by their drunken orgies 
destroy the effect of his life work for their good. If on the other 
hand the seamen are converted, we shall have missionaries indeed. 
" But to return. You know that we had a long and tedious 
passage from New Orleans to Philadelphia, and that through 
your persuasion, I was induced to ship again with you, and a por- 
tion of the same crew, for the West Indies. During that period 
of two months I was the most miserable of men. Three-fifths of 
the crew were religious. Their daily sendee made me truly un- 
happy. I wished, a thousand times the voyage at an end, and my- 
self clear of what I called a dead-and-alive set of men, though they 
were really the very best men I ever sailed with. But their good 
example was a standing reproof of my own life. That experience 
proves to me that if a sinner were placed in heaven with his sins 
unrepented of he would be miserable in the extreme. On our re- 
turn from the West Indies, I made a very wicked resolution and 
carried it into effect. I resolved to ship in the first vessel that 
offered, and go anywhere, to get rid of religion and praying 
sailors. We returned to Philadelphia in August, and I shipped 
on the day we arrived in the brig " Oglethorpe," for Savannah. 
I remember that you entreated me like a brother, not to go, as 
it was the sickly season there. I excused myself by saying 



68 FIFTY YEARS AMONG sailors. 

I never bad been siek, and therefore had no apprehensions. 

The real reason however was, 1 wished to avoid religious seamen, 

and. gel among men of my own way of thinking. God, however, 

sted me in my mad career. I was taken with the yellow fever, 

ing out ^\~ Savannah. Three of the crew were already 
down with it. and 50 ba 1 that they were compelled to keep their 
berths. When we sailed, being short-handed, we gave a "beach- 
comber," as the sailors called him, a passage. It was well we 
did so, for he and I were the only two of the crew that could do 
a hand's turn. Olf Tybee Light, we sent down the royal yards, the 
mate going up to the main, and I to the fore top-gallant mast- 
head, but as there was no one on deck to hoist or lower away, 
we had a hard time of it I was seized while aloft with violent 
pains in the neck and back, which so weakened me that I 
thought that royal-yard and I must come down by the run to- 
gether. I reached the deck however, with great difficulty, and was 
compelled to sit down on the coamings of the hatch; but I felt 
determined not to give up. Yet I soon became so helpless that 
I had to be carried below. 

"For several nights the fever raged so fiercely that I was out 
of my mind. The Spirit of the Lord seemed however to be 
ling with me. I have a distinct idea of a dialogue being 
carried on between myself and some unseen personage. I was 
Stioned very closely, whether I would give up my sins if I 
mitted to live ? I responded, honestly as I believed, 
that I had not done any great sin. But that did not appear satis- 
fy t<> the unseen, so the question was repeated. I found a 
direct an \, and I gave it, rather reluctantly, 

admitting at the same time that I was not as bad as some others. 
finished the colloquy for the time, and I made a desperate 
_ r et on deck, and do something, fearing lest we should 
the line gale, and I 

St of the four, but I could not walk alone. The 

ingiy tint we could not work the ship. We 

however to get into Norfolk. One man, the "beach- 



CHRISTIAN SAILORS. 69 

comber," had died and been buried at sea. The rest of us were 
taken ashore to the hospital. Here two more died. After a 
week, I resolved to make an effort to get to Philadelphia. The 
only survivor of the crew besides myself and the cook, was then 
dying, and went to his account. 

1 ' The cook and I left Norfolk together, and arrived safely in 
Philadelphia. After seven weeks the cook died, and your hum- 
ble servant was the only living remnant of that hapless crew. 

" My old shipmates found me a living skeleton — a perfect 
wreck of my former self. But they found me more ready to lis- 
ten to reason than before. I have often asked God why I was 
spared alone, of that brig's crew ? I, who had despised so many 
privileges ? After resting a few weeks, another rare chance was 
offered me. I shipped with a pious captain in the brig "Delight," 
accompanied by some of my former shipmates. During fifteen 
months in her I did not hear a man swear. It was on board that 
vessel, far out at sea, away from churches and ministers, that I w T as 
led to see my error, and to obtain the knowledge of God, as he is 
manifested in Jesus Christ. This shows that God is not confined 
to temples made with hands, and that whenever or w T herever he 
is sought, on the sea or on the land, if called upon sincerely and 
in truth, he will reveal himself to the soul that seeks him. 

" I have often heard it said, and so have you, that a sailor 
cannot serve God at sea. This does not correspond with my ex- 
perience. I am sure that they who make this statement have 
never fairly tried it. I have enjoyed the real comforts of religion 
at sea more than I ever did on land, and I feel encouraged to- 
day, and am assured that Christ's is the only way. I am resolved, 
by His grace, still to steer for the beacon on Mount Calvary. We 
may be forced by an adverse wind to work tack and half-tack to 
windward, and sometimes under stress of weather to heave her to. 
But I mean to keep her close at it until I fetch in between the 
headlands of hope, and bring up forever, safe moored in the ha- 
ven of eternal life." 

The writer of the above subsequently shipped in the 



JO FIFTY YEARS AMONG sailors. 

revenue cutter M Legare," for the purpose of laboring for 
Christ, and was greatly blessed in his efforts. Having 

. ed out his time, he returned home, married a wife, 
bought a farm and settled down for life. But he, like the 
rest of his shipmates of the schooner, could not content 
himself away from the seaboard. He therefore returned 
to Philadelphia, was appointed superintendent of the 
Sailors' 1 lome, became a shipping-master, an officer in the 
Mariners' Church, and labored long among his former 
companions of the sea. He still lives (in 1884), to work 
and worship among that class of .men, in the midst of 
whom his eyes were first opened to the light of spirit- 
ual life, which is eternal. 

As a fitting sequel I here state a pleasing fact in con- 
nection with the visit of my brethren and myself to the 
1 1 of Santa Cruz. In May, 1847, while laboring in 
New London, I was invited to make an address at the 
anniversary of the American Seamen's Friend Society, 
in the Broadway Tabernacle, New York. After the 
address, and as 1 returned to my scat, a gentleman came 
Upon the platform, and told me that a lady in the audi- 
ence wished to speak to me. On reaching her side, 
she introduced me to a young gentleman who had that 
day arrived from Santa Cruz. I found in him, a young 
man, who at the time of our visit, in 1841, was a teacher 
Ir. Stevenson's slaves. He said to me, "I wished to 
nized in you one of the crew of the 
" Roanoke/ 1 All you have stated concerning the effect 
it at our island is true. I can substantiate 
ry word and m< >r« . I can tell you, what you do not 
know, that -a left several of the slaves have been 

converted as the result of your visit, and and some of 



CONSECRATED. 7 1 

them have fallen asleep in the arms of Jesus, with a bright 
hope of a joyful resurrection. One boy, only twelve 
years of age, was converted and became the instrument, 
in God's hands, of the conversion of his father from 
Popery.'' 

He further stated, that he, himself, had been converted, 
and was now on his way to Nashotah, Wisconsin, to 
enter upon a course of study for the ministry. I am 
happy to say that this gentleman still lives, and though 
he never entered the ministry, he has given his life to 
Christian work, as a layman, and for the last twenty 
years has been superintendent of a Sabbath-school. In 
a letter to me, in 1881, I learn that he is still engaged in 
special labors for the salvation of the young. 

The belief that I was called of God to preach the Gos- 
pel which had saved me, being firmly fixed in my mind, 
so much so, that I felt a woe would follow if I did not 
obey the call, I determined to study for the ministry. 
My pastor applied to the Presbytery of Philadelphia to 
take me under its care with a view of entering upon stud- 
ies preparatory thereto, and to recommend me to the 
Board of Education, as one of its beneficiaries. At the 
meeting of the Presbytery at which I was to be presented 
for examination, there was, as I subsequently learned, a 
doubt in some minds as to the propriety of taking 
a sailor under its care for the responsible duties of the 
ministry. Some said to my pastor, " What does this 
sailor know about the matter ?" He replied, " Good 
brethren, the candidate will come before you, and you 
can satisfy your own minds on that point." 

This will account for the course pursued on that occa- 
sion. The moderator appointed that venerable man, Dr, 



J2 FIFTY YEARS among sailors. 

Ashbel Green, to conduct the examination, who, instead 
asking me questions as to my religious experience, 
and call to the ministry, said to me, ' ; Mr. Jones, be kind 
fcnough to take the platform, and tell these brethren why 
you desire to be a minister, and why you think you are 
called of God to enter upon so solemn and important a 
work." 

This gave me an opportunity of telling the whole story 
of my eventful life, and recounting the dealings of Divine 
Providence with me, from the beginning. When I had 
finished my narrative, which was listened to with tearful 
attention, Dr. Green said, " You have answered all 
the questions which I had intended to ask. The Pres- 
bytery have now an opportunity to ask the candidate 
any questions they may deem necessary." Two ques- 
tions only, were asked ; one was, as to the particular 
field of labor I had in view ? To this I replied, that 
there were two fields which presented themselves. The 
first was to preach the Gospel to sailors. My heart went 
after the men who go down into the deep, and do busi- 

in great waters. The second was to go as a mis- 
sionary to India, as my knowledge of the Bengalese, 
picked up in my frequent intercourse with Bengal sailors, 

such that I felt I could soon acquire the language 
sufficiently well to enable me to preach in the popular 
dialect without the tedious process of learning the lan- 
guage grammatically. But I was ready for any field God 
in his providence should assign me. Dr. John Mc- 
Aell, then asked me if I had ever read the life of John 

ton ; and on my replying that I had not, he urged me 
to procure the book and read it, as there were many fea- 
ture^ in my life which bore a striking resemblance to his, 



CONSECRATED. 73 

I was then requested to withdraw a few minutes. 
Shortly after my pastor came out and told me I was 
accepted, and would be recommended to the Board of 
Education. I thanked God, and re-consecrated myself to 
his service. 

Near the close of September, 1841, at the age of 
twenty-three, I entered the academy of Mr. Joseph P. 
Engles, in Philadelphia, and for the first time in my life 
was made acquainted with the mysteries of the English 
grammar, geography, arithmetic and history. In con- 
nection with these studies, I also recited in the Greek 
and Latin grammars. In the June following I was trans- 
ferred to the Model School of Lafayette College, Eas- 
ton, Pennsylvania. Here I was prepared for College, 
and in eleven months from the time of entering the Acad- 
emy I passed my examination and entered the Freshman 
Class. As soon as I had taken possession of my room in 
college, I established a Saturday evening prayer-meet- 
ing, which the students were invited to attend. That 
meeting was continued during term time, until our class 
graduated, in 1846. Many precious souls were stimu- 
lated and comforted. Some were hopefully converted 
there who have since entered into their rest. One of 
those converts was for many years a Rev. Professor of 
Greek Literature, in one of our colleges. He died 
recently in the triumphs of faith. 

I also engaged in teaching a class in a Sabbath-school, 
some two miles from college. Subsequently I became its 
superintendent, and am not without assurance that good 
was done to souls, through the blessing of Christ on the 
effort. During my college course I was often hard up 
for means to provide the necessaries of life. The seven- 



74 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

ty-tivc dollars allowed me annually from the Board of 
Education was a great help. Bnt it was necessary to 
supplement it from other sources. In this direction I 
was materially aided by the ladies of the Female Sea- 
men's Friend Society of Philadelphia, who supplied me 
from time to time with necessary articles of clothing. 
Among these I would mention with special gratitude 
Mrs. Sarah A. Potts, Mrs. John Wood, and Mrs. and Miss 
Caroline Tate, all of whom have gone to their reward. 
I replenished my finances somewhat by lecturing on 
Biblical History and Biography, illustrating these sub- 
jects by the aid of a magic lantern. I also taught 
school in the first term of the junior year, and spent my 
vacations in missionary work among seamen. In Sep- 
tember of 1846, I graduated, and for that occasion wrote 
and delivered a poem, of which the sailor was the sub- 
ject. I then bade a long farewell to college scenes and 
college life, in order to ascend the higher plane of theo- 
logical study. 



CHAPTER IV. 

THEOLOGICAL COURSE AND FIRST MINISTRY. 

Theological seminary — Prayer-meeting — Revival — Presbyterian Church — 
A reminiscence — Among the whalemen — Revival in Monmouth County, 
N. J. — Large ingathering— One convert a missionary to seamen — 
Licensed to preach — Vacation work — Call to St. Louis — Taken in tow — 
Introduction to boatmen. Sabbath desecration — Work interfered with 
by fire— On a collecting tour — Death of wife — Boys' meeting — Ordain- 
ed an Evangelist — First boatmen's church organized — Dedication of 
new church — Doom of an infidel — Call to New York — Affectionate 
farewell — Public approval — Gathered results — Two converts enter the 
ministry — Their impressions — Voluntary efforts— Co-workers with 
Christ — Testimony of a Christian merchant. 

At the close of my collegiate course, I removed to 
Princeton, N. J., and on the 27th of August entered the 
Theological Seminary. I found my studies here some- 
what more congenial than the classics, as they bore more 
directly on the work of the ministry. In October of 
fliat year I established a prayer-meeting in a private 
house in the lower part of the town. But, as it grew in 
numbers and importance, it became necessary to remove 
to a larger place. A school-room in the neighborhood 
was offered for the purpose, and it too was often crowd- 
ed to repletion with inquiring souls. Other students 
became associated with me, and took their part in the 
labor of love. Professor William H. Green also became 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG sailors. 

ply interested in it, and often came and preached the 
Word to us. This blessed work continued to live and 

W during all my Seminary course, and resulted in 
the conversion of precious souls. Many of these subse- 
quently united with a colony from the First Church to 

mize a new enterprise, which is now the Second 

sbyterian Church of Princeton. Some thirty souls, 
at least, were hopefully converted by the joint efforts 
put forth. Some others moved to Virginia, and maintain- 
ed their Christian life and consistency during all the 
dark and troublous days of the civil war. How many 
more were benefitted, eternity along will reveal. 

It may not be out of place in this connection to insert 
an extract from a letter recently received from Professor 
W. Henry Green, D.D., LL.D., containing a reminis- 
cence of that work. He says: 

"1 have always felt an admiration for your Christian zeal, 

manifested in seizing ever}' opportunity, during your course of 

study in the Seminary, to labor for the spiritual good of all 

wh< -m you could reach and benefit ; and here express my sense 

of the great value and lasting consequences of the meetings 

which you conducted in the lower part of Princeton. The 

awakening, which, under the Divine blessing, followed your 

earnest and faithful labors, laid the foundation of the Second 

byterian Church in this place, of which I have always con* 

jrou the spiritual father, and this church is a standing 

monument of your pious zeal in the Master's cause. It carries 

with it a most important admonition to do with our might wh.it- 

OUI hands find to do, and an assurance that our blessed 

I will not 1 -t humble and sincere endeavors to spread His 

kingdom, fill to the ground." 

During the three years I spent in Princeton, I devoted 
all my spare time to efforts for the salvation of others. 



AMONG THE WHALEMEN. 77 

To this end I went into the outlying towns and villages, 
making temperance addresses, preaching in an informal 
way, and doing good generally as I found opportunity. 
I had a two-fold object in view in following this course. 
I was desirous of glorifying my Saviour by bringing sin- 
ners to His feet, and cultivating my own powers at the 
same time. 

At the close of March, 1847, I received a letter stating 
that the people of New London, Conn., were expecting a 
large fleet of whale ships in port during the summer, the 
crews of which would number from nine hundred to one 
thousand souls. To meet the spiritual wants of these 
men, to point them to Christ, and seek the salvation of 
their souls, I was invited to minister to them as a lay 
chaplain, and made an engagement for three months, un- 
der the auspices of the Female Seamen's Friend Society, 
a noble band of self-denying and benevolent women, of 
whom Mrs. Commodore Rogers was the honored First 
Directress. Entering upon my work in the latter part 
of April, I visited ships and boarding-houses, distributed 
the Word of God, scattered tracts, preached on board 
vessels and in the various churches, and in every other 
way, by personal appeal and public address, labored for 
their salvation whenever and wherever I could get access 
to them. Some of the fruit of this effort was visible at 
the time, though much less than I desired. The Divine 
seed, however, went forth on the wings of the wind to 
the whaling grounds of the South Seas, and to other 
parts of the world, whither the out-going vessels were 
bound. Some of the living bread thus cast upon the 
waters was found after many days. Before I left New 



;S FIFTY YEARS AMONG sailors. 

London, almost every man to whom I brought the Gos- 
pel had shipped and sailed again. 

While on a visit to that place, in 1849, I learned 
from a captain that several of those whalemen had, on 
their return, connected themselves with evangelical 
churches in New Bedford, in parts of Maine, and else- 
where, who stated that their 4< convictions of the truth 
were the result of sermons preached by the Rev. Chas. J. 
Jones in the old Methodist church of New London, in 
1847." I learned also, that there was a degree of seri- 
ousness on board of the ship Julius Caesar, from the time 
she left port, in 1847, until her return ; that religious 
worship had been observed daily, and that some of her 
men had united with the church. 

I returned to Princeton in the fall, and during the win- 
ter of 1847-8, our prayer-meetings were resumed with 
blessed results. In March, 1848, while we were rejoicing 
over the gracious in- gathering, Rev. L. H. Van Doren, 
of the old Tennent Church in Monmouth county, New 
ey, being in the midst of a precious revival, came to 
the Seminary for help. Two of the brethren and my- 
self, at his invitation, accompanied him home. On 
reaching the neighborhood w r e found the people every- 
where hungering and thirsting for the Word. After a 
week of hard work, I returned to my studies. We heard 
subsequently, that in addition to nearly three hundred 
converts who joined Mr. Van Doren's church, the congre- 
gation at Freehold was increased by over fifty members. 
At Hightstown the Baptists received one hundred and 
two. At Cranberry, fifteen were added, and at Spotts- 
wood as many more. 

One result of that blessed revival ought to be mentioned 



LICENSED TO PREACH. 79 

here, because it is associated so closely with the work 
among seamen at the present day. On an evening in 
which I preached at one of the school-houses, a farmer 
of some wealth was converted, and became at once a 
worker in the gospel field. After eleven years of faithful 
service for Christ in his own neighborhood, he sold his 
farm, came to the city of New York, and while engaged 
in business has thrown himself with all the ardor of his 
new love into missionary work among seamen, where he 
continues to labor with unabated vigor and zeal unto this 
day. Thus, in addition to the souls actually born into 
the kingdom by that initial effort, an impetus to labor 
for others was given, which has lost none of its original 
potency in a period of over thirty-five years. Who 
could have anticipated that the preaching of a converted 
sailor, in a country school-house, far away from the sea- 
board, would have ultimated in a faithful, voluntary and 
self-supporting effort at soul-seeking along the wharves, 
and among the ships and sailors of New York city for a 
period of twenty years ! Yet so it is, and the end is not 
yet. Well may we exclaim, " What hath God wrought !" 
" Verily He sendeth by whom He will send." 

On the fifth of April, 1848, after the usual examina- 
tion, the Presbytery of Philadelphia licensed me to preach 
the gospel of Christ. Blessed privilege ! Great responsi 
bility ! " O that God may enable me to be a faithful min- 
ister of Jesus Christ to lost souls !" was my heartfelt 
prayer that day. 

The vacation of 1848 was spent in travelling through 
the State of Pennsylvania as an agent of the Philadelphia 
Seamen's Friend Society, collecting funds and endeavoring 
to awaken an interest in the spiritual welfare of sailors. 



80 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

Tn the spring of 1849 I was called to take charge of an 
enterprise for improving the moral and religious condi- 
tion of the boatmen of the Mississippi. Being excused 
from attending the closing exercises of the seminary, I 
married in Philadelphia, on the 9th day of April of that 
year, Miss Martha Baker, to whom I had been betrothed 
for eight years — she having generously waited for me 
that I might not be obstructed in my studies. We reach- 
ed St. Louis, the field of my labors, on the 22nd of 
April. My movements were thus accelerated, that I 
jilt be present at the opening of the spring navigation 
on the western waters. 

A few days only were required to find a place of 
abode, and on the 2d of May I entered fully upon my life- 
work, under very favorable auspices, as far as the object 
of my charge was concerned. I was taken in tow by one 
of the oldest boatmen on the Mississippi, who boasted of 
having been afloat on the river ever since his childhood. 
1 [e had poled up against the stream in the days of keel- 
boats, lie was full of reminiscences and anecdotes 
of those earlier days, and regaled me with a graphic 
description of the passage of the first steamboat on the 
river, and the exciting scenes that were witnessed on the 
way. He assumed the prerogative of introducing me to 
the officers of the boats. Kis introductions were rather 
unique in their method, but most hearty in their sincere 
1 will. ( >ne will suffice. It ran like this: "Here, cap- 
tain, I want you to be acquainted with our little minister. 
He is none of your fellows with their white chokers, that 
vou can't touch with a forty foot pole. I Ic'll come along 
and take you by the hand and say a good word, and pass 
on, if you are in a hurry. I le is a sailor, he is ; and knows 



PREACHING IN ST. LOUIS. 8 1 

when to speak. If he sees you are engaged, he will not 
interrupt you, but will see you another time. I want 
you to know him, and just give him a kind word, 
d'ye see ? to encourage him. You must come to church 
too when he's got a place to preach in, now, mind ye." 
Quaint as was the introduction, it was hearty, and did me 
good service ; and the responses on the part of the 
officers and men were quite as cordial. Many expressed 
their gratitude that there was one man at least that was 
willing to think and work for the neglected boatmen. 
One said : " I am glad to see a minister who is not too 
big to talk to boatmen. Some of 'em come aboard with 
their stiff starched cravats, and look so sanctified, that 
a boatman can't come near 'em." Another said : u We all 
want preaching to." Another, " Well, Til let you talk 
to me ; I'm a sinner, I am." I found among them some 
truly pious and devoted men, who were subsequently my 
most zealous supporters and assistants in every good 
work. 

In a few days a temporary place for preaching was 
secured. The Westminster Presbyterian Church was 
engaged for a part of the day, the other part I spent in 
the distribution of tracts, and in personal visitation 
among the men, on board their boats, for the purpose of 
inviting them to the house of God. The desecration of 
the Sabbath, at this time, was fearful. Boats were load- 
ing and discharging with utter disregard of all law and 
custom, human or Divine. I learned that there were 
eighty thousand boatmen on the Mississippi, and its trib- 
utaries ; eight thousand of these connected directly with 
the trade of this city, one thousand five hundred of 
whom are ashore every day. 
4* 



8 J FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

To meet the spiritual wants of these men, I was the 
only chaplain oil the rivers west of Cincinnati and 
Chicago. The responsibilities of such a position were 
by no means insignificant, under the most favorable cir- 
cumstances. But when it is stated that the facilities for 
carrying on the work were by no means adequate, it will 
be difficult to over-estimate the demand upon my ener 
Obstacles to success seemed to multiply. If one was 
removed another arose in its place. I was wont, how- 
ever, to look on the bright side, and was not easily dis- 
couraged, although not entirely without my fears. My 
young wife was dying with consumption. Some who 
had embarked in the enterprise, . were loud in their 
expressions of dissatisfaction at the want of zeal in others, 
and seemed inclined to withdraw their aid. I was there- 
fore thrown quite largely upon my own resources. But 
just as I was rallying to meet the existing difficulty, on 
the 17th of May, a steamboat at the levee took fire. 
Before she could be backed out, the flames communica- 
ted with other boats, and swept down the river side for a 
distance of two miles, devouring in its course twenty- 
three of our finest boats, and licking up three solid 
blocks of the business part of the city. 

The loss of several millions, out of the boating and 
mercantile interests, necessarily precluded the possibility, 
( and took away all hope of procuring funds for our enter- 
prise for months to come. I was therefore compelled to 
change my tactics. I took my dying wife back to my 
mother in Philadelphia, and set out on a tour of the east- 
ern citie-, to raise funds for the work. While I was thus 
engaged, 1 was recalled to Philadelphia to close her eyes, 
and to lay her body away in the grave. On the 19th of 



ORDAINED AN EVANGELIST. 83 

August she breathed her last, so that four months and 
ten days after my marriage I was a widower. 

After attending the obsequies of my dear one I 
swallowed my grief and returned to my collectings. 
Having raised fifteen hundred dollars, I started for the 
West to pursue my work with redoubled zeal. On my 
return I secured Odd Fellows' Hall on Fourth and Olive 
streets, for regular Sabbath services. Two Sabbath 
schools were organized, numbering together finally one 
hundred and seventy scholars. I assisted in the organ- 
izing and conducting of a " Boys' meeting," which kept 
some two hundred urchins out of the streets on the Sab- 
bath, and gave to them such practical Bible lessons and 
instruction as laid the foundation, at least, of their future 
usefulness. On the 9th day of January, 1850, I was 
ordained an Evangelist by the Presbytery of St. Louis. 
The Rev. W. S. Potts, D. D., preached the sermon, from 
Heb. v. 4 ; Rev. J. A. Lyon delivered the charge, Rev. Dr. 
Hall having proposed the constitutional questions. The 
service, to me, was one of peculiar solemnity. At the 
laying on of the hands of the Presbytery, I felt my 
whole soul go out to God in an agony of prayer that a 
double portion of the Divine Spirit might be conveyed 
to me through their act. I found it impossible to keep 
back my tears. " How great the honor to be taken 
from the dung-hill and set upon a level with the princes 
of the earth. O that I may be a faithful steward of the 
mysteries of God to these ' men of the waters' ! " Thus 
I wrote in my diary. 

On the 17th of March a church organization was 
effected on a union basis. Thirteen persons constituted 
the First Boatmen's Church of St. Louis. In less than 



84 FlITTf YEARS AMONG sailors. 

nine months, that number was more than doubled. On 
the 6th of June I entered again upon the responsibilities 
of wedded life, taking for my wife Miss Emma Wood, 
Boston, a member of the Episcopal Church. During 
I life she brought to our happy home, over 
which she presided with grace and dignity for thirty 
[ear children. To her gentleness and affec- 
tionate sympathy, I am indebted for the domestic happi- 
- of all those years. Much of my usefulness and sue- 
in the ministry, is also to be attributed to her active 
energy and unselfish co-operation with me in every- 
thing that my hands found to do. She was suddenly 
relieved from the burden of earthly care, to enjoy the 
rnal companionship of her Lord, April loth, 1880. 
Our children are all, under God, through her faithful 
hings and godly example, in the bosom of the 
church, and anticipate with me the blessed reunion in 
our Father's house above. 

On the 29th of August, 1850, the corner-stone of a 
church edifice was laid with appropriate ceremonies on 
the south side of Green street, below Third. It was a 
neat Gothic structure, built of brick, sixty feet front, by 
enty in depth, with a square tower ninety feet high, 
ted on ground that had been leased for thirty years, 
cost altogether was about twelve thousand dollars. 
• of March, 1852, it was dedicated to the wor- 
ship of God, for the use of the boatmen of the West. 

In this church I labored until September, 1854, at 
which time I turned it over to the care of the Western 
riend Society, which organization assumed 
the : bility of conducting its affairs, on the condi- 

tion that it should come into their hands unburdened by 



\ 




Page 84.— BOAT?.IEX'S CHURCII, St. LOUIS, MO. 



boatmen's church. 85 

debts. This, through the liberality of the citizens of St 
Louis, I was enabled fully to accomplish. When I left 
there was, as a result of my pastorate of five and a half 
years, a church capable of seating three hundred and 
fifty persons, free from debt, a membership of sixty-five, 
a good congregation, a flourishing Sabbath-school, and 
stores on the ground-floor, rented at a sum sufficient to 
meet the requirements of the lease. It was therefore 
unencumbered, and in a flourishing condition to await the 
advent of my successor. 

Many incidents of thrilling interest occurred during my 
ministry among the boatmen ; the burning of boats, col- 
lapsing of flues, bursting boilers and deaths in the most 
violent and painful forms, all tending to rouse the 
deepest sympathies and incite me to faithfulness in my 
Master's work ; all of which, together with my conflicts 
with infidels, socialists and spiritualists, must be passed 
by in order to come to what I conceive to be the main 
work of my life ; for the sole purpose of presenting 
which, with its blessed results, this book is written. 

One incident among the many which came under my 
personal observation, I must here relate. On a Sabbath 
morning in the summer of 1850, while making my 
usual tour of the boats laying along the levee, in order to 
distribute tracts and invite men to church. I boarded a 
boat, which was to leave the next morning, for the up- 
per Mississippi. Finding a number of engineers and 
pilots sitting together in the fore part of the cabin, I 
offered each of them a tract, with a kind invitation to 
attend divine service in the Odd Fellows' Hall, in the 
evening. They were all very courteous and civil but 
one, who I learned was the captain of the boat. Ap- 



FIFTY YEARS among SAILORS. 

me with a rough and unkind expression, he 
d me what I brought those things for ? I offered 
him a tract, but he thrust it from him, with an oath, and 
urse, and speak of such publications as lies 
le up for a purpose, and invented to order, and ask- 
ed me if I ever read them myself? I replied that 

I had not read them all, but could vouch for them, and 
such was my confidence in the truth and purity of the 

l who wrote and published them, that I felt as safe in 
tributing them as if I had read every one. He still 
at to his curses and infidel sentiments, and seem- 
ed furious in his opposition. I saw that he was not in 
a proper mood to be conversed with, and thought it best 
not to press the matter, but said to him, on leaving, 

II Well, captain, we will not discuss this subject further, 
as it is unpleasant to you ; but let me say this, before I 
go. You and I are hastening to the judgment seat of 
Christ, where we must both give an account of this 
morning's visit." He replied in a contemptuous tone of 

tnd in words more forcible than polite: " The 
judgment," prefixing it with a vulgar expletive, " is a 

Ion ;f." I replied, " Captain, it may be much 

irer to both of us than either suspects. 11 He took no 
further r my remark, and I left, saying, "This may 

be the last opportunity you will ever have." 

On the W following, I met in the street an 

ad witnessed the interview with the cap- 
it. He said to me, "Chaplain, we 

v that Captain treated you so on 

Sunday morning. After you had gone we expostulated 

El account of the rough manner in which he re- 

cei . >ld him you had been appointed as 



CALL TO NEW YORK. 87 

the minister to boatmen ; that you only wanted to do 
them good, and we ought at least to treat you as a gen- 
tleman. He replied, he did not know who you were, 
and he did not want those lying tracts. By the way/* 
said this gentleman, " did you notice the flags at half- 
mast on Tuesday ?" I replied that I had seen them, 
but did not know the occasion thereof. " Well," said 

he, " they were for Captain ." '* What," said I, " is 

it possible he is dead ?" He replied in a subdued tone. 
" Yes, he is dead. He took his wife and went to the 
Sulphur Springs on Sunday afternoon, died of cholera 
that night, and was buried yesterday." "Then," said I, 
" the judgment was not so far off as he had conceived. 
Let that be a warning to you to be ready for the 
call." 

Having occasion to visit the East in the summer of 
1854, on account of the failing health of my wife, I was 
invited by the New York Port Society to take charge of 
the Mariners' Church. Feeling it to be my duty to 
accept the call, I returned alone to the West, resigned my 
charge and settled up my affairs. On the 23d of Septem- 
ber, 1854, I took my farewell of my dear people at St. 
Louis, among whom I had found warm hearts and strong 
hands always ready to help me. The congregation pre- 
sented me, as a token of affectionate esteem, with a mas- 
sive silver pitcher, two goblets and a salver. The child- 
ren of the Sabbath-school added a silver-headed cane. 
These articles bore inscriptions expressive of the good 
wishes of the donors, to serve as mementos of pleasant 
associations, and of their good will. 

As an evidence that my efforts in this field were not 
unappreciated by the public in general, I insert here an 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

ie of the daily papers, published about 
the time dedication of the church. It is headed 

"Boatmen's Church," and reads thus : 

• ' F< >r scvcr.il years just the community have been watching the 
in undertaking whose objects commend it in the 
their benevolent sympathies, but whose feeble 
med to threaten, sooner or later, its ultimate down- 
fall. From the date of its birth and along through all its strug- 
iblished foothold, whether in the sunlight of 
hope or in the shadow of despair, we have seen the energies 
ne man, perpetually active in its behalf. A faithful pilot, he 
has watched, with sleepless vigilance, every approach of danger, 
and found the surest way of escape. An ever ready defender, he 
has breasted every [oe, and by his tongue or pen, has disarmed 
mquished opposition. A disinterested friend, he has hesitated 
at n<> sacrifice which he had the power to make, whether of 
means or of labors, for the safety and prosperity of the enterprise 
which had his all-absorbing devotion. He did not fail of attain- 
ing hifl ultimate object, because he would not. He now sees a 
triumphant fulfilment of his hopes, and long may he live to 
enjoy it and to be the almoner of those moral benefactions which 
a hitherto neglected class of men will derive through the 
instrumentality of the Boatmen's church. No one in this com- 
munity will need be told that our reference is to its pastor, the 
rlea J. Jones." 

Among many gracious results of my ministry in St. 
Louis, which arc yet distinct and traceable, was the con- 
o lads, who were members of my Sabbath- 
school, both of whom entered upon a course of study for 
the ministryj and finished their curriculum with credit to 
and with acceptance to the church. They 
nt and useful pastor^, the one in Indiana, 
and the other in Westchester, in New York. Both have 



GRACIOUS RESULTS. 89 

been blessed in their ministry, and as preachers are 
above the general level. Both have been permitted to 
enjoy, as a result of their faithfulness, gracious revivals, 
in which large additions were made to their respective 
churches. One of them has taken rank with the literary 
men of our country as the historian of the county 
in which he resides, and is the author of other valuable 
publications. These young men have kindly forwarded 
to me letters containing their reminiscences of incidents 
witnessed and participated in by themselves during the 
stirring years of my first pastorate. The reader will par- 
don me, I trust, for inserting those letters here, as they 
give vivid and life-like descriptions of events to which I 
have not myself referred, lest I should seem to be sound- 
ing my own praise-. Such things as they have written 
may be more appropriately narrated by another than my- 
self, as they are the impressions of a third party. Impres- 
sions, too, made upon those who were in the church, and 
therefore famiiiar with its internal affairs, and capable of 
appreciating the value of the spiritual energies and agen- 
cies put forth. They participated in and enjoyed bless- 
ings such as they are now themselves laboring to repro- 
duce. The elder of these writes as follows : 

" Shelbyville, Indiana, Sept, 24th, 1880. 
i( My dear old Friend and father in Christ — lam very sorry 
indeed that I cannot furnish the chapter for your book that I 
proposed and intended to write. I was anxious to delineate such 
points, as these, in regard to your St. Louis ministry. I thought 
you a very remarkable man, in the depth, tenderness and sweet- 
ness of your piety. It was always comforting to hear you, or to 
be near you. The way you used to shake hands with the con- 
urbation 3-fter preaching, and your look, was literally a means of 



90 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

ik from my own and others' experience. I then 
md n>>w think your preaching was very powerful and 
impressive and stirring. Your extempore efforts were fully 
equal to your written sermons. 

sl impressions o( my life were made upon me by 
my beloved first pastor. Your boldness in defending the truth, 
and the ability and success with which you did it, made a life- 
Mi upon me, and produced an immense effect in 
St bouis, that is even now spoken of. I have never seen your 
equal in the Sabbath-schools, nor as a speaker to children. 
Eternity alone can unfold- the true history of the Broadway Boys 
Meeting. Your popularity was simply enthusiam. Your fare- 
well sermon showed that. I never witnessed a like scene ; such 
tender emotion and tears. The amount of business you used to 
do in your church, in the general Sabbath-school cause in the 
. in temperance, in writing for the press, in aiding individu- 
were a marvel to me. To this day I cannot comprehend 
how you did it all, and did it so well. 

: ice rely yours, ' ' G. S. " 

The other wrote in August, 1880 : 

u M\ Dear Mr. Janes — You wished me to give you some ac- 
int of my 1 >n to Christ, and my views in seeking the 

ministry. My first serious impressions, as I remember them 
. occurred when 1 was about twelve years of age. Previous 
to this I had lived in neglect of God and his cause ; but about 
time I commenced attending the Boys and Girls' Meeting, 
in the old iy Market House, St Louis This meeting, 

If and a few friends, among whom were Mr. 
. A. Armstrong, Mr. McNair, and William 
of boys and ^irls gathered from the street. 
In this meeting my young heart was deeply impressed with di- 
v myself a lost sinner, without God, and with- 
out hope in t About tint time I united with the Sab- 
1 -school of th< ii s Church, on Green street. And 



BOYS MEETING. 91 

there, the impressions made upon my heart in the boy's meeting 
were deepened. Here I made the acquaintance of Mr. George 
Sluter, and was greatly aided by him in finding my way to 
Christ. I well remember the long struggle I had with sin, and 
the almost hopeless despair that settled down upon me. But 
God, who is infinite in mercy, manifested the riches of his grace, 
and the fulness of his love in dissipating those clouds, and filling 
my soul with the sunshine of his presence. I well remember the 
happiness and peace that filled my soul as the light of heaven 
came streaming into my heart. Under your guidance and advice 
I united with your church on the 14th of May, 1854. I im- 
mediately commenced working in the vineyard, under your di- 
rection, seeking to bring others to a knowledge of that Saviour 
who was so precious to my own heart. Though a mere lad of 
but fourteen years, I took a class in the Sabbath-school, and 
with my friend Sluter, spent every Sabbath afternoon in distribut- 
ing tracts for you, along the levee, and on the steamboats. We 
often visited from twenty to thirty liquor saloons, distributing 
tracts, talking to the inmates about their souls and eternity ; but 
our chief work was among the boatmen. We visited every boat, 
gave tracts to all we met on board, and invited them to come to 
the Boatmen's church. 

1 \ Another feature of our work, consisted in standing in front 
of the church, ever}' Sabbath evening for about half an hour be- 
fore evening service, giving tracts, and inviting all who passed 
to come to the services of God's house. In this way we induc- 
ed many to come to the church to listen to the preaching of the 
gospel. It was while engaged in this work, that a strong desire 
came into my heart to preach the gospel. I wished to make 
known the joyful news of salvation to all the world. This de- 
sire grew and strengthened from day to day, until it became the 
consuming desire of my soul. I longed to be an instrument in 
God's hands of leading lost and ruined souls to Christ, of 
directing them to that Saviour whose merits are infinite, and 
whose blood can cleanse away every stain of sin. God, in his 



92 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

providence, opened up the way for me to study for the ministry, 
and now, for the last fifteen years, 1 have had the unspeakable 
privilege oi preaching the glorious gospel of Christ. I wish to 
that it has always been a source of profound thankfulness to 
me. that 1 had your counsels, and prayers and advice in the early 
my religious life. I am glad that you directed me to 
the sure and safe foundation, that you impressed upon me at the 
very outset of my religious life, that I was to be a co-worker 
with Christ, in bringing souls into the kingdom, and that I 
should commence this work immediately. I am glad that in 
my youth, the formative period of life, I enjoyed so faithful a 
ministry as yours was in St. Louis. It will be a source of thank- 
fulness to me, through all eternity, that God, in his providence, 
guided me to the Boatmen's church, and permitted me to enjoy 
the preaching of its faithful and successful pastor. 

" Yours truly, R. A. D." 

The next testimony, and the last in this connection, is 
from an educated Christian merchant of St. Louis, an 
alumnus of Trinity College, Dublin. He was familiar 
with the difficulties I encountered from the assaults of the 
enemies of the truth He knew their animus and their 
aims, was familiar with their plans, attended their infidel 
gatherings as a witness for, and a defender of the word 
of God, and materially aided me to counteract the de- 
moralizing influence they were exerting on the youth 
of the city. 

" PoiXERTON CASTLE, Carlcw, Ire/and, October 20th, 1880. 

" Jfv dear Brother — Your most welcome letter of the 6th inst. 
has been placed in my possession by the mail of this morning, 
my memory baek across the wide Atlantic, and the ever 
widei mi of time, for well nigh thirty years, when a 

dweller in St. Louis and a member of your household, I saw 
the 'First Boatmen's church,' founded and raised by your un- 



LETTER FROM CHARLES CASEY. 93 

tiring energy, unflagging zeal, and heroic perseverance. When, 
as the years rolled on, I saw that church become a veritable 
Beth-el, to the hitherto castaways on the moral desert of the 
levee, and for the first time, the most demoralized and uncared 
for class of the population, won, to give a glad hearing to the 
words of eternal life, I saw how that seemingly irredeemable class, 
which no man cared for, and who had lain bound by Satan in fet- 
ters of habit and dens of wickedness, were personally sought out 
in their bondage, and their rescue achieved by the grace and 
mercy of God, working through your exertion ; I saw how that, 
wooed as it were by the zeal of a love unfeigned, to attend the 
Boatmen's church, the poor fellows heard from the capstan-head 
on the forecastle (a uniquely designed pulpit) in homely and 
familiar words the touching- story of the Cross — the glorious gospel 
of the grace of God, the full and free forgiveness of sin, and the 
promise and assurance of everlasting life. No quarter-deck theo- 
logy with Sinaitic threatening, that hardens the more hearts obdu- 
rate by long habit and hard usage, but the Calvary-toned persua- 
sion of love, turning the stony heart into a heart of flesh, and 
calling forth the dead and buried conscience from its tomb of in- 
dulged sinfulness, to the life of sin-conviction, the necessity of 
repentance and reformation, and the belief of plenary forgiveness 
and salvation by the grace of God, through faith in Christ 

" I watched and saw how the first-fruits of your Pauline zeal 
became missionaries among their fellows, until the congregation 
'increased tenfold, and how that when with upraised and out- 
stretched hands, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love 
of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Ghost were invoked, an 
answer was vouchsafed in the Pentecostal fulness with which the 
Holy Spirit was poured upon the converted souls of the congre- 
gation. Moreover, I saw — when pernicious doctrines of pre- 
tended wizards (called spiritualism) and sadduceeic materialism, 
spread in our city, leading away thousands of the credulous and 
unwary on the broad and downward road to perdition — how faith- 
fully and fearlessly you fought the good fight, with the sword of 



94 FIFTY YEARS /IMONG sailors. 

nth once delivered to the saints, and helped 

I weak and unworthy helper in the outside 

gainst these doctrines of devils, whereby many were led 

lestniCtion, and many more would have been, but for the 
of God helping our opposition. 

hi the broad earth, on the deep sea, in the kingdom of heaven, 
this day, a cloud of witnesses, living and dead, testify to the lov- 
mercv of our Father in having redeemed them through your 
from the death of sin to the life of righteousness ; and 
I humbly thank (iod for the privilege of being permitted to testify 
to his grace and glory, in that you have, my dear brother in 
Christ, preached the word, instant in season and out of season, 
reproving, rebuking, exhorting, with charity and long-suffering. 
And I rejoice in the conviction that there is henceforth laid up 
for jrou a ■ crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous 
judge, shall give you at that day, and not to you only, but unto 
all them that love the Lord.' 

u Ever faithfully and fraternally yours, 

11 Charles Casey. " 



CHAPTER V. 

MARINERS' CHURCH, NEW YORK, 1 854-5 — FIRST FRUITS. 

Mariners' Church — Good and bad spirits — Early history — Dedication — 
Organization — Fruits of labor — Gathering the crew — " That prayer 
haunted me " — Anders Jensen — Apostolic zeal — A serious accident — 
Consistent Christian — Bible colporteur — Service in the navy — U. S brig 
Bainbridge — All hands lost — Fred. Starr — "Thou art the man " — Grace 
to believe — Revenue cutter "Joseph Lane " — Converts — Missionaries to 
Sweden, Norway and Denmark — Enters the navy — Humboldt Bay — ■ 
Twenty-nine years for Christ. 

After a few weeks rest among the mountains of 
New Hampshire, I came with my family to New York, 
and entered upon my ministrations to the men of the 
sea. The prospect was not at all flattering, when on the 
1 2th of October, 1854, I preached my first sermon to my 
new charge. The reader may imagine a small company 
of about forty persons in a hall, not much larger than 
many parlors in the city, and that too, over a rum-shop. 
If the numbers were few, their hearts were warm with 
the love of Christ, and their hands were strong to labor 
for the Lord. Their greeting was most cordial and 
cheering, but the associations of the place were not very 
assuring. While we worshipped there, we could say of 

95 



i)(> ill TV YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

a truth that we had rum, for once, under our feet. 

There v., 

" A spirit above and a spirit below, 
•,'irit of weal and a spirit of woe ; 
The spirit above was a spirit Divine, 
But the spirit below was the spirit of wine. " 

And blessed be the great head of the Church, the good 
Spirit remained with us after we left the hall and entered 
our own church edifice ; so that the relative position 
of those spirits was never reversed. It must not be 
interred that the enterprise had but just begun. It had 
a history, dating back a generation before I was appoint- 
ed. It was originally located in Roosevelt street, and 
possessed a capacious church building, erected in 1 8 19, 
which had the honor of being the first church ever 
erected on the land, as far as we know, for the special 

of seamen. It had been a centre of holy influences 
there for years before my ministry commenced. Within 

acred walls, many of the sons of the sea had found 

peace in believing, under the ministrations of the Rev. 

e, who for thirty years lured men by the love 

of Christ. He ceased from his labors and entered the 

heavenly rest in 1853. Shortly after his death, the 

hborhood having changed, that building was sold, 
and the ation, in the absence of a settled pastor, 

had red among other churches. The Port 

iety then removed to the ball, to which reference has 

orner of Market and Monroe streets. 

During the first six months, the audience and the Sab- 

i-school had so largely increased, that the hall 
us. 



MARINERS' CHURCH, NEW YORK. 97 

In May, 1855, we removed to the Methodist Episco- 
pal church, on the corner of Madison and Catherine 
streets, which we occupied on the afternoons of the Sab- 
bath until October of that year, when the Port Society 
purchased the building. A few weeks having sufficed for 
the cleansing and renovating of the interior, the opening 
services were held on the first Sabbath of November. 
The pastor preached the opening sermon from Haggai 
ii. 3-9. On the 23d of December, the church was dedi- 
cated to the worship of Almighty God, as a Seamen's 
Church. The Rev. J. W. Alexander, D.D., preached the 
sermon, from Revelations xx. 13, and in the evening the 
Rev. S. H. Tyng, D.D., preached from Matthew x. 8. 
In the afternoon, the Sabbath-school, under the superin- 
tendence of Mr. Samuel Holmes, numbering one hundred 
and fifty scholars, celebrated its thirty-eighth anniversary, 
having been organized in 18 18. 

Up to this time, as already stated, there had been no 
church organization. The church, so-called, was a body 
without a soul, an inn without refreshments ; the min- 
ister a mere preacher, and the people a congregation. 
The conversion of a sailor, was in one sense a loss, rather 
than a blessing to the preacher and the congregation ; 
for, as soon as he began to breathe his new life, he was 
compelled to go elsewhere for nourishment. This was 
felt to be an evil of no small magnitude, but how could 
it be remedied ? The Port Society was composed of men 
from several denominations of Christians ; all could not be 
united in any one denomination, and if they could have 
been, the charter of the society would not warrant a sec- 
tarian organization. Yet an organization was essential 
to the continuance of the relation so auspiciously begun. 
5 



I'll TV YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

A plan of union was proposed, in which all who loved 
the Lord Jesus Christ, and received the fundamental 
truths oi Christianity, could form themselves into a dis- 
tinct, permanent and independent church, in which the 
pie could have all the ordinances of the Lord's house 
administered to them for their nourishment and growth, 
and of which the minister should be the bona-fide pastor. 
The plan was not adopted without much prayer and 
counsel. The arguments, pro and con, were patiently 
heard and duly considered. Some of the wisest and best 
of our ministers in different parts of the country were 
consulted. Among them the sainted Dr. James W. Alex- 
ander, who gave to it his warm and hearty support. 

On the 2d of March, 1856, an organization was 
effected, on an independent basis, by the adoption of a 
confession of faith, form of covenant, and standing rules 
for its government, under the name and title of the 
11 Mariners' Church of the Port of New York," which 
thus became a pioneer church in the work of Christian 
union. 

There were false prophets in those days — prognostica- 
torsofevil, who declared "it could not stand, it would fall of 
its own weight ; and furthermore that the churches would 
not sustain it It would become necessarily sectarian. ,, The 
character of these prophecies are manifest in the fact that 
the church which came into being on that day, with sixty 
members, on the seventh anniversary of its organization 
enrolled on its books over seven hundred and sixty. 
The secret of this success, under God, is found in the 
fact that the people had a mind to work. They became 
a spiritual people, and by God's grace came in on the 
tidal grave of the revival of 1857 and 1858. The pastor's 



MARINERS' CHURCH, NEW YORK. 99 

hands were upheld by the Port Society, whose generous 
support raised him beyond the sphere of worldly care and 
anxiety, and whose cordial sympathy in the work encour- 
aged his heart by their prayers and personal co-operation. 
He was no less cordially sustained by the social habits of 
the people, by the missionary zeal of the hundreds of our 
seamen, who were scattered abroad over the sea, speaking 
all languages, and living and working for Christ; but above 
all and beyond all by the continued presence of the Holy 
Spirit, who manifested his converting power in a marvel- 
lous degree to the unbelieving, and his comforting grace 
in the edification of his faithful people. 

In addition to the labors of the pastor and the faithful 
missionaries in this field, there were other agencies in 
operation, all of which contributed to the general result. 
Since the institution of the Port Society, in 1 8 1 8, and its 
incorporation in 1 8 19, other organizations sprung up from 
time to time, most of which are still fresh and vigorous. 
Among these are The American Seamen's Friend Society, 
The Marine Bible Society, The Seamen's Retreat, The 
Home for Destitute Children of Seamen, The Mariners' 
Family Industrial Society, Sailors' Homes, The Asylum 
for Infirm Widows, Wives and Mothers of Seamen, The 
Seamen's Bank for Savings, the Swedish Bethel Ship, 
The Episcopal Floating Churches, The Methodist and 
Baptist Mariners' Churches, and the Marine Temperance 
Society, numbering at this time over sixty-eight thous- 
and members. 

Having anticipated somewhat, in order to present an 
outline of the progress made in organizing and getting 
the church into regular working condition, I now return to 
the narrative. 



IOO FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

The first six months service in my new field was nee- 
trily formative, the season of germs, the seed time. 
rything was new. The people were strange tome 
and 1 to them. Much time and labor were expended 
therefore in laying the foundation for the future. Yet 
it was not by any means all seed-sowing. There was some 
in-gathering the result of former efforts. Some seed 
then sown brought immediate returns. The living word, 
in some cases, like Aaron's rod, budded and blossomed 
and brought forth fruit in a single night. Such fruit too, 
as retained its original freshness and fragrance for years 
after its inception. Germs then planted have grown up and 
flourished in the garden of the Lord; some of them now, 
after a quarter of a century, having the seed in them- 
selves, still bear rich fruit to the glory of God. 

A few days only sufficed me to get the lay of the land, 
and gather suitable material for my work. The ship 
being ready for sea, the next thing was to gather the 
crew. To this end I went out into the highways and 
by-ways, visited extensively the families and boarding- 
houses where the men were to be found. I canvassed the 
wharves and the shipping, men-of-war and merchantmen, 
the City Hospital, the U. S. Naval Hospital at Brooklyn, 
the U. S. Receiving Ship, the Seamen's Retreat on 
Staten Island, the Sailors' Homes, and the Tombs, to find 
suitable material to work upon. I preached sermons, 
delivered lectures, made temperance addresses, and held 
private conversations ; I distributed Bibles and Testa- 
ments, and oilier good books, entreated men personally, 
and prayed with them alone. I pressed young men and 
old into the service, organized sewing circles, established 
prayer and tempt ranee meetings, wrote to sailors while 



"FIRST-FRUITS. ICI 

absent, and button-holed them when at home ; in short, 
laid every available force under tribute to bring men into 
direct personal intercourse with my own soul, that my 
Saviour might be glorified in them. Having great confi- 
dence in the warm grasp of the hand, the kind word, and 
the affectionate tone. My own sea life and experience 
suggested these to me as a means by which to win the 
souls I longed to save. 

I said it was " seed-time/' but it was also the season of 
" first-fruits." To symbolize the activities then in the 
course of development, the orange tree in the maturity 
of its power would best characterize them ; for all 
stages of spiritual growth, from the tender leaf to the 
blossom, and from the blossom to the full ripe fruit, were 
here in progress. And because of this peculiarity of the 
work, it is next to impossible to present either its extent 
or its effectiveness. In the first half year I preached 
more than a hundred times, made twenty-five temperance 
addresses, led, on an average; three prayer-meetings a 
week ; made over two hundred visits to families ; held 
religious conversations with them all, and bowed in prayer 
with more than one-fourth of them. I conversed pri- 
vately with one hundred and eighty sailors, and bowed 
in prayer with one-third of that number ; supplied them 
all with packages of books and other reading matter, to 
take to sea with them, and pointed them to " the Lamb 
of God that taketh away the sin of the world.'' 

The congregation steadily increased, until the place 
became too strait for us. The Sabbath-school doubled 
in numbers. Thirty-six souls were hopefully converted, 
and thirty others went to sea, expressing anxiety for the 
salvation of their souls. Of the thirty-six converted, 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

twenty-two wore sailors, and ten youth of the Sabbath- 
sch< oL As Paul spoke affectionately of the first-fruits of 
AchaiauntO Christ, and remembered them in his epistles 
to the churches, surely I may be pardoned for counting 

some of the first-fruits unto Christ in New York. Anions 
the first of these converts was a young man with whom I 
had labored in New Orleans, in 1 841, but in whose soul 
the seed lay dormant, like the wheat in the hands of the 
j -ptian mummy, waiting only God's time and way to 
quicken it into life. 

At the dinner-table of the Sailors* Home, 190 Cherry 
street, in the fall of 1854, a gentleman sat beside me, 
whose countenance I did not remember having seen 
before, but who seemed to have some recollection of me ; 
for after gazing at me intently for a few seconds, he 
asked : " Were you ever in the ship \ Cumberland,' of 
Boston, sir ?" I answered, " Yes, sir, I was on board of that 
old craft in 1 84 1, in New Orleans." " Do you recollect 
me, sir ?" said he, his face glowing with what to me 
seemed an unexpected pleasure. I was compelled to 
admit that I did not recognize the features, and did not 
remember that we had ever met before. "Well, sir/' 
said he, " you may forget, but I never can. No, sir, I 
never can forget that interview, and that prayer/' He 
then stated the circumstances of our meeting, hoping 
that I might by the power of association be able to recall 
the interview. The substance of his story, without enter- 
into minute details, was simply this : " I was in New 
Orleans in 1S41, second mate of the brig 'Cameo,' of 
Boston, and having heard that there was to be a prayer- 
meeting on board of the ship ' Cumberland,' I went up 
the levee for the purpose of attending the service. On 



AN OLD ACQUAINTANCE. 103 

the deck of the ' Cumberland,' an acquaintance of mine 
introduced me to you. You seized me by the hand, 
warmly, and spoke to me of the love of Christ, urging 
me to come to him and obtain the salvation of my soul. 
During the meeting you were called upon to pray, and 
it appeared to me that I never did hear just such a 
prayer. It left an impression on my mind that has never 
been, and never will be obliterated. That is more than 
thirteen years ago, yet that prayer has haunted me ever 
since. How often have I laid in my berth and thought 
of it, and wondered where the man was who offered it, and 
wished I could only see him once more. How often have 
I wished that I was as good as the man that offered up 
that prayer. And now, after many years, I am permit- 
ted to meet you. Can it be that you are the man that 
offered that prayer ? Well, sir ! I never expected to see 
you again! But," he continued, "you have forged 
ahead some since then. You were then before the mast, 
and I abaft it. Now you are a minister of the Gospel, 
and I — what am I ? Alas ! Well, I must hear you 
preach." 

The Sabbath came, the seamen were assembled, and 
among them my friend from New Orleans. He listened 
to the discourse with rapt attention, and occasionally the 
tear unbidden coursed down his weather- bronzed cheeks. 
He was at church three times that day. During the 
week we met at intervals, and spoke of the eternal inter- 
ests of the soul, and of the wonderful Providence which 
had brought us together, after so many years of vicissi- 
tudes and changes. At the close of the week he was 
unexpectedly called to Boston on business, and spent the 
Sabbath there, but returned to New York the week fol- 



104 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

lowing. I met him in the street, took his hand affection- 
ately, and spoke feelingly to him of his soul. His eyes 
filled, and he said : " Mr. Jones, I have given myself to 
Christ I am his, and will be, God helping me, as long 
as I live." Oh ! how my heart thrilled with joy, when 
he told me that during his absence from New York he 
had publicly professed Christ before men, and expressed 
his determination to live for God. " O, sir," said he, 
4i that prayer haunted me. I had no peace. I felt that 
all was not right. But when I heard you preach on the 
Sabbath, and recollecting that I had heard from your lips 
a prayer which penetrated my heart thirteen years ago, 
I could not but reflect on the difference between your 
influence and mine during the interval. It occurred to 
me that perhaps you had been the means, in God's hand, 
of bringing many sons into glory, and that in all that 
time I have no assurance that one soul has gone to 
heaven through any influence of mine. This was a 
painful thought. I felt that my time had been wasted, 
squandered, and I determined that I would lose no more. 
I consecrated the remaining portion of my life to the 
service of God and the good of men." 

There was a strange providence in our meeting at all 
in New York. He had come to this city some two or 
three weeks before, and commenced business, with the 
full purpose of becoming a permanent resident. He was 
permitted to remain here long enough to meet the man 
he had longed for thirteen years to see, and to hear him 
preach, just one Sabbath, the truths of the everlasting 
peL The next week, in the providence of God, a 
more lucrative offer was made to him in Boston. He 
accepted, and went, to yield his influence for Christ there, 



A WORD IN SEASON. 105 

and to become a faithful servant in the vineyard of our 
Lord. 

From this simple narrative we may safely infer : 1st, 
The importance of " a word in season." " In the morning 
sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thy hand, 
for thou knowest not which shall prosper, either this or 
that, or whether both shall be alike good " (Eccles. xi. 6). 
Such a word may be as an apple of gold in a network of 
silver. Its value may not be fully estimated until every 
work, with every secret thing, shall be revealed in the 
judgment. But we do know that " it shall not return 
void." It shall accomplish the thing whereunto God 
sent it. 2nd, It should stimulate us to renewed diligence 
to be " instant in season, out of season — always abound- 
ing in the work of the Lord, for as much as we know 
that our labor will not be in vain in the Lord." Souls 
are perishing. If a word may be made instrumental in 
saving one, then, let us speak that word. Let us be 
faithful, whether men will hear or forbear. The seed may 
fall into good ground, and bring forth a hundred fold, to 
the glory of God. 3rd, We have special grounds for 
encouragement to labor among seamen. They are sus- 
ceptible of kindness. They have been neglected, and 
sometimes feel that no one has their interests at heart. 
A kind word, therefore, concerning the love of our 
blessed Saviour to them, as well as others, may send a 
glow of hope through the soul, and the hand of affec- 
tionate sympathy, guided by the spirit of God, may 
touch a chord in the heart, that will vibrate in harmony 
with the song of angels and the redeemed through all 
eternity. Finally, it may serve to impress on our minds 
the fact that " God is not unrighteous to forget our labor 

5* 



106 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

of love." We may — if we do our duty with a single eye 

to the glory of God in the salvation of souls — sow much 

1. which we may forget ever having scattered, but 

which the Lord of the harvest will remember, and con- 

ling which he will doubtless say, as he fills our 

miis witli the golden sheaves, " Inasmuch as ye did 

it to one of the least of these, my brethren, ye did it 

unto me." 

The following narrative of a Danish sailor furnishes a 
remarkable illustration of the missionary spirit by which 
sailors are animated when once they are converted. 
The stamp of perfection is found on all the works of God, 
small and great. Naturalists tell us that in the earliest 
geological formations of organized beings, the most per- 
fect specimens are found. Science and revelation are 
here in accord. God hath made everything good and per- 
fect in its time. The lowest form of animal life, as seen 
in the protozoa, is as perfect in its beginning as is the 
highest form in man. It was not an evolution from any 
pre-cxistent form, but a distinct and separate creation. 
This fact in nature finds an analogy in the work of the 
Divine Spirit. The human spirit, created anew by the 
Jehovic energy, comes forth from his hand prepared at 
to enter upon the work to which it is assigned, and 
that work is as perfect in its kind and degree as though 
after the experience of ages. The man who is 
in Christ is a new creature, and his work for Christ is 
charan terized by his new life. What he does is the pro- 
duct of a Divine Spirit within him, and is consequently 
tod and as acceptable in the sight of the Lord as 
work of subsequent experience. One of the first 
converts of my ministry in New York was Anders Jen- 



WEEPING SOUL. 107 

sen, a noble soul, whose whole life was a standing evi- 
dence of the truth of the above principles. A more de- 
cided missionary spirit did not dwell in the heart of any 
of the workers of the apostolic times than was enshrined 
beneath the rough physical exterior of this Danish sailor, 
who was born of the Spirit in the little room over the 
rum-shop in Market street, in the early days of 1855. 

At the close of one of our meetings, in January of that 
year, I found him sitting near the door with his face bur- 
ied in his hands, weeping bitterly. He was a heavy, 
large-formed, stalwart man, thirty-eight years of age, 
whose countenance evinced the energy which he after- 
wards so nobly displayed where iron nerve was necessary 
to enable him to do his Master's work. His soul-jewel 
was encased in a homely setting. His red, unkempt hair, 
his hard-featured face, which had been browned by the 
exposure of twenty years at sea, gave but the promise of 
the hard toil he afterwards endured for his Divine Lord. 
There he sat, weeping convulsively, the burden of sin 
pressing heavily upon him, his whole frame shaking with 
emotion, and his heart ready to burst. I had preached 
that evening from the words, " Remember Lot's wife." 
The Spirit used them to send an arrow of conviction into 
the very depths of his heart. I presented him to the 
Lamb of God, and prayed with him, and as he was leav- 
ing, gave him such directions as his case demanded. The 
next day he came again, and said he thought every word 
of the sermon was meant for him. I saw him from time 
to time for the next three days, during which the Divine 
Spirit led him higher and higher up into the Divine life, 
until he could look down upon his soul as a territory con- 
quered for Christ. 



10S FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

On the 14th of January, he was awakened, and on the 
h he came to my study a new man, a new spirit ani- 
mating him. lie was all aglow with the love of God, 
his face fairly gleaming with the love of his new-born 
soul. When giving an account of his change afterwards, 
he said, " 1 could not stand the kindness, it broke my 
heart." As soon as he found peace, he began to labor 
for the souls of others. Within a month, after a short 
coasting voyage, he came to me, bringing the mate of 
the vessel, who had been a skeptic, but who was now 
bowed down under a sense of his sins. On his return, 
after a voyage in a Dutch ship, he came again, bringing 
one of his shipmates, converted through his faithful la- 
bors — an evidence of his success in fishing for men. In a 
letter to me of a later date, he says : 

" Do vdu think I can ever forget the man who led me to 
Christ? Yob said, ' Come, shipmate, wont you go to church ?' 
Y( >u afterwards found me crying, ' What shall I do to be saved ?' 
and you directed me to the cross of Christ May the Lord bless 
you, and all the friends of seamen/' 

At the end of three years after his conversion, he re- 
turned to us, full of the love of Christ ; and on entering 
the church, he wept tears of joy. During his absence 
in the East Indies and China, an accident happened to 
him in Shanghai, which seemed to bring out his true 
spirit as a child of God. The story was told me by a 
r brother in Christ, and I will record it in his own 
words. His letter is dated Shanghai, May I2th, 1856. 
tys : 

'An ill -terday that interested Brother Holm, 

a young Christian sailor, and myselfj as I doubt not it will you. 



A CONSISTENT CHRISTIAN. ICX) 

In visiting the ship ' Africa, ' we learned that one of the hands, 
about an hour previous, had fallen into the lower hold, injuring 
himself severely, though not dangerously. We found him in 
his bunk, calm as a summer s morning. We made some in- 
quiries in regard to his mishap, and a few minutes' conversation 
opened the way to one of the most agreeable interviews I have 
been permitted to enjoy since I arrived at Shanghai. After he 
had got through showing his bruises, which certainly had not 
added much to his personal appearance, to say nothing of their 
painfulness, in reply to a question which was asked him in re- 
gard to his interest in Christ, he hung down his head and wept 
like a child. It had touched a tender spot, and with a heart 
overflowing with joy, he gave us in all the simplicity and beauty 
of a sailor's style, a short history of himself. Your name came 
in frequently during the latter part of it. He said, ' I know he 
will not forget the distress I was in on account of my sins ; just 
tell him I am striving to make my way heavenward. Send him 
my heart's love.' 

" H 3 says he left New York in one of the steamers that run 
to the Isthmus. During the early part of last year the cholera 
broke out on the passage, and all who took the disease, of which 
there was a large number, died with it, with the exception of 
himself. On his arrival in California he went to the mines, 
but left them, on account of the disturbed state of the country, 
and shipped in a French vessel for Hong-Kong, and thence to 
Shanghai, in the ship he was then in. The occasion of his fall- 
ing, he said, was thus. He had just waked up, and was going down 
into the between-decks, in order to have a little season of prayer, 
when his foot slipped, and he fell head-foremost into the lower 
hold, among the stone ballast. It is a wonder that his brains 
were not dashed out ; and yet it is not a wonder when we re- 
member that God has a special care of His children, and not a 
sparrow can fall without his notice." 

The same brother writes the year following, March 
7th, 1857. While busy with my daily work, a few 



110 111 IV YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

morning two sailors came to my office. One of 

them handed me a letter, which he said was from a 

It read as follows : 

Amoy, January 20, 1857. 
f friend and brother in Christ — I promised to write 
you as soon as I had an opportunity, but I hope you will excuse 
me, as I never wrote a letter in English. I was very sick when 
■ you last, having fallen into the ships hold and broken my 
head I was happy to think that there were a few in Shanghai 
who feared the Lord. We went to sea the next day. I am 
under great obligations to you for the books and tracts you sent. 
I have sent many of the books afloat in different ships to differ- 
ent parts of the world. Some of the men on board the ' Africa ' 
have gone to their long home. There were some who feared 
the Lord. Only one shipped in the same vessel, and he is dead. 
1 i and I had sailed a long time together. He was a young man. 
He died in the hospital at Amoy, with the Bible you gave me 
under his h :ad. He had long despised that precious book, but 
he found forgiveness in the blood of Christ. In .Hong-Kong I 
n board a Holland ship. I trust I have been enabled 
to do some good in this ship with the books and tracts you sent 
me. 

my example many of the last crew went on shore at 

f i • g-Kong teefo »talers ; they would not drink any kind of liquors, 

and four of them were seeking religion. To hear such ungodly 

as they were singing the songs ofZion on board a ship, did 

my heart good, and I rejoice, and am glad to think that I 

1 be the humble instrument in God's hands of scattering 

the news that Christ came into the world to save sinners, even 

mm h as are in a ship's forecastle. It would do your heart good 

lips, that once blasphemed, now sing and pray to 

On board every vessel in which he sailed, the captain, 






A CONSISTENT CHRISTIAN. Ill 

mates, and crew, all unite in testifying to his consistent 
and beautiful Christian life. 

The meekness and boldness of this simple-minded man 
of the sea was something to be admired. He was gentle 
as a child, but when true heroism was demanded for the 
work of the Lord and the love of man, he was always 
equal to the emergency. An incident will illustrate this 
trait of his character. It was in 1857 ^ ie had written : 

1 ' We are having great trials, and much to battle with, if we 
would live for Christ in the forecastle. We have sometimes both 
officers and men making game of us. Poor men ! I pity them. " 

He then adds : 

"On the last vessel in which I shipped, before signing articles, 
I showed the captain my certificate of church membership, and 
said to him : ' Captain, I am a Christian. I know my work and 
intend to do it ; but I will not be cursed and damned about the 
decks. If you think you can get along with me on those con- 
ditions I will go ; if not, say so, and I will not sign the articles. ' 
The captain replied : ' It is very good. I am satisfied. ' He was 
a good moral man, and we made the voyage together. The 
mate was a professor of religion. I found him out at sea, and 
said to him : l There are two of us now, one on each end of her. 
Let us pray mightily to God and see if we cannot have prayers on 
board ; ' but he said, ' The captain is not a professor. ' ' Well, ' 
said I, ' let us go into the forecastle ; ' and we did. 

"The first Sunday out we had prayers there, and all hands 
were present, except the man at the wheel. Blessed be God for 
His mercies. There was not much swearing on board that ship, 
the crew were good moral men. I am sorry to say we did not 
have public prayers on our passage home. It was difficult to 
find a quiet place, but the Lord blessed us nevertheless. " 

After voyaging to San Francisco and different ports 



112 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

in the Bast, he returned. The evidence of his Christian 
faithfulness is abundant ; a volume of excellent reading 
might be made from his letters. In these may be found 
accounts of revivals which followed him wherever he went. 
In 1858 a captain with whom he sailed, thus writes of 
him: "Anders Jensen, a seaman, has been abundantly 
blessed of God in his influence in the forecastle. His 
modest}' will not allow him to tell what he has seen of the 
results of his labors, therefore we must wait until that 
day when every secret thing shall be revealed, for only 
then shall we know the influence he has exerted." 

At the close of the year 1859 I received a letter from 
him. He had just returned from Liverpool. In it he 
says : " I had to do battle all the passage from Liverpool 
with the crew. I tried to keep them in brotherly love, 
and without disputes. The captain is a Methodist, I think. 
I never asked him. Why should I ? We loved each 
other, and I am sorry I cannot go with him again." In 
the year 186 1 he went home to Denmark, and from Co- 
penhagen, in January, he wrote me : 

Friend and Pas/or in Christ — It is a long time 

I wrote you. It is not hecause I do not think of you. 

• •, know that wc cannot cease to think of our bene- 

specially of our brethren in Christ, called before us, and 

made the instruments in God's hands of leading us to Christ. 

Tint I am afraid you have been an idol in my heart. For a long 

I could hear none that could preach or pray like you. I 

bed for nearly three years, and at iast paid my passage from 

rpool to New York to find out what you called your church. 

3 like a little chiid then, and I desire to he nothing else now. 

truly, the Lord has led mc by a way I knew not, but 

1 [e will not give his glory to another, I feel to sny. ' Bless the Lord, 

my soul, and all that is within me ble.ss His hoV name. 1 It is 



SERVING IN THE NAVY. 113 

a wonder that He should permit such a one as me to work in 
His vineyard. But what cannot the Lord do ? I am now in 
the country in which I was born, laboring to win souls to Christ. 
It is a delightful work, when it is of the Lord, although it is a 
heavy cross when alone. Yet, thanks be unto the Lord Jesus, 
he says, ' I am with you always, even unto the end of the world ; ' 
and in the end the promise is sure. I find Him always willing 
and ready to help me, and to lift me up when I fall. I go about 
selling Bibles, or rather trying to sell, for the people are not buy- 
ing many. I distribute tracts, and can use all the tracts and 
little books that I can get, for the people receive them kindly. 
The rich will not, and the poor cannot, purchase for the want of 
money ; however, I manage to sell some of them. I am to 
remain six months from the time I came to Hamburg. I do not 
know whether I shall be able to sell all the books in that time, 
but I am sure if I have my health I can give away many more 
tracts if I can get them, and that would be doing a great deal of 
good among my seafaring countrymen. I labor, also, out on 
the country roads. I expect, in a few days, to take a tramp into 
the interior with Brother Ryding. I hope the Lord will go with 
us. I find it very difficult to speak my own language. Give my 
kind love to Mrs. Jones and the children. I need your prayers 
very much. God bless you, for Jesus' sake." 

Since he wrote the above, I have been enabled to trace 
the footsteps of this devoted herald of the Cross. The mis- 
sion of six months to his native land having been accom- 
plished, with what success in the ingathering of souls the 
judgment alone will reveal, he returned with all the long- 
ing of a child for his home, to the birth-place of his soul. 
During his absence in Copenhagen, our fearful Rebellion 
had raised its hydra-head. As soon therefore as he 
reached the United States, he threw himself with all the 
ardor of his nature into the perils of the war for the 
8 



114 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

fence of his adopted country. Having enlisted in the 

United States Navy, we find him in 1861-2 onboard the 

ship Shepherd K11 ipp, belonging to the South Atlantic 

squadron. In a letter dated May 30, 1862, from that 

el, he says : 

ept my grateful thanks. I have received your letter, 

and, 1 assure you, it cheered my downcast soul. As I read it, I 

I, ' Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me 

ss His holy name ; ' for he, it was, who inclined you to write 
to me. I am glad that I am not forgotten in your prayers. 
Jesus will bless those who pray for his afflicted children. His is 
an everlasting love. 

" At the beginning of the cruise, we had frequent prayer-meet- 
in gs, but they have now virtually ceased. As I am yeoman of 
the ship, I enjoy a privacy in prayer, and therefore I hold my 
meetings alone. Yet I am not alone, for the Lord is with me. 
Eternal thanks and praise be unto the Lord Jesus Christ, who 
gave himself for me. I thank you for your advice concerning 
f the scriptures. I read several chapters daily. I 
the Lord is instructing me for some good purpose. I 
handed your letter to the captain to read, and will read it to my 
shipmates as the Lord shall direct. Our captain is a noble and 
kind-hearted soul. I hope the Lord will bless and reward him 
for his k.ndness to me and to us all. I hope we shall meet him 
in heaven. I am longing to do something for the Lord. I gave 
your letter to Heggars to read. He is a well-disposed and good 
young man." 

Not long after the date of this letter the Shepherd 

Knapp was lost, and the crew transferred to other vessels. 

and his friend Heggars were drafted to the brig 

Bainbridge, commanded by Acting-Master Thomas J. 

Dwyer, whose autobiography will be found in connection 

1 tiie record of the African Squadron. As a sad 



ALL HANDS LOST. 115 

close to the history of these devoted men, it becomes my 
painful duty to state that a short time after, while the 
Bainbridge was on her way to join the blockading squad- 
ron, she went down in a storm off Cape Hatteras with all 
on board. Sudden death to these godly men thus 
became sudden glory. 

FRED. STARR. 

Free from the law, O happy condition ! 
Jesus has died — and there is remission. 

" The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, 
and he delighteth in his way." It is a blessed privilege 
therefore to trace the steps of such a man, to mark the 
way in which Jehovah leads him. I have sketches of 
many such men ; but among them all, few, if any, will 
more redound to the declarative glory of our Redeemer 
than will the life and labors of this young Swedish 
mariner. 

Fred, was awakened in New York in the fall of 1855. 
While under deep conviction, he shipped in a brig bound 
to Aspinwall. His Bible became his constant companion 
and only solace. From it he drew, to assuage his soul- 
thirst, water from the wells of salvation. In his own 
account of that trying passage, during which the burden 
of sin lay heavily upon him, he says : 

" We encountered a severe gale as we entered the Gulf Stream ; 
but that was nothing to the storm that raged within, when the 
Lord revealed to me, 'Thou art the man/ who hast broken the 
commandments of God. I was studying my Bible in my watch 
below, but no peace could I find. I saw only my sins. The 
terror of the Lord was upon me the whole passage. I had no 



116 FIFTY YEARS among SAILORS. 

The crew wore all godless men. They could not help 
ears without and doubts within. What could 
myself to prayer as well as I could. Nine days of 
re we reached Aspinwall. We arrived on Sat- 
urday. ( )n Sunday I went ashore, and strolled off by myself on 
the beach. There I kneeled down and poured out my soul to 
He heard my cry and saved me. I experienced such a 
• peace in my soul as I had never known before. It seemed 
to me that the earth was changed to the very heavens. Every- 
: about me was lovely. God gave me, at that time, grace to 
believe on Jesus as my personal Saviour, and that I was free. 
After four days we left Aspinwall and returned to New York. 
Here I first met Brother Byrne, and became much attached to 
him. He was made a very great blessing to me." 

In January, 1856, he shipped for San Francisco, and, 
arriving there after a passage of four months, he shipped in 
the Revenue Cutter "Joseph Lane." On board this vessel, 
amid persecution and opposition, he strove to draw others 
to Christ. He found however that Satan's seat was in 
the cabin as well as in the forecastle ; in the cutter, as 
well as in the merchant-ship. He was nevertheless 
faithful to him who had called him "out of darkness into 
his marvellous light;" and after twenty-two months was 
rewarded by the conversion of several of his shipmates. 

rly three years after he shipped in the brig in 
which he was born again, I received from San Fran- 
\ California, the following, written by a dear brother, 
en : 

Starr left here to-day, after serving the Lord for 
. utiis in the Revenue serviee. He was the instru- 
ment, in the hand of Cod, of the conversion of several of his 

. who are now at the Sailors' Home. I heard their 
I gave evidence that they had ' been with Jesus, 



GRACE TO BELIEVE. II7 

and had learned of Him/ How many more will be brought to 
God, through his influence, eternity alone will determine. Fred, 
is no great speaker, but he Iivjs before his shipmates in such a 
way that his life speaks for Christ, though he opens not his 
mouth. Yet he is in no way backward to reprove sin, whenever 
it is necessary, in an humble and telling way. Persecutions 
neither daunt nor affright him. His shipmates, though at first 
they persecuted him, at length came to acknowledge that they 
were wrong, and that Fred, was right. Hence their change/' 

Some weeks after the above was written, a sailor 
came to my house in New York, and introduced him- 
self as one of the crew of the Joseph Lane, who had 
been converted on board that vessel, through the influence 
and labors of Fred. Starr. Fie was a Swede. He express 
ed a desire to unite with our Mariners' church, prepara- 
tory to his return to his native land to preach Christ to his 
countrymen as the Saviour of the world. Having joined 
our church, he sailed for his Swedish home. Still later, 
another sailor, a Norwegian, came from the same vessel, 
with a similar story of his conversion through the labors 
of Fred. Starr. He joined cur church on a confession 
of his faith in Christ, and went to Norway to tell his 
friends of the new light which had dawned upon his soul. 
In a few weeks after he had sailed, still another sailor, 
a Dane, came from the Pacific coast. He, too, told me 
how Fred. Starr had been the means of his conversion. 
M Now." said he, " I am going home to Denmark, to tell 
my people what God has done for my soul. O, this is a 
different religion to what they have there. I want to go 
and tell them about Jesus Christ" He soon after sailed 
for Denmark, to preach, in his humble way, the Gospel 
of our Lord. 



I [8 FIFTY vtaks AMONG sailors. 

: leaving the "Joseph Lane," Fred, coasted along 

the shores of the Pacific for a season, still serving the Lord 
with cheerfulness, and enduring opposition with patience, 
until [860, when he made a visit to his home in Sweden, 
to tell his own people of his blessed change, In 1861 he 
returned to the United States, and entered the Navy, to 
fight for the defence of the Union. 

On board of the United States steamer " Lancaster/' in 
the Pacific squadron, he labored faithfully for Christ, for 
three years, and in connection with another of my corres- 
pondents, did good service for the Master, until over 
twenty of the crew were converted. During that cruise 
the weekly prayer-meeting was established and kept up 
among the crew, the chaplain, the Rev. Dr. Stock- 
bridge, and Lieut. Riel countenancing the work and ren- 
dering efficient aid. Writing of the prayer-meeting, in 
November, 1862, Fred, says: "The meeting was started 
ut a year ago, and has increased in numbers until 
about twenty take active part ; and it is our most ardent 
desire, that the whole ship's company may become en- 

ed in the blessed work. I saw Brother T in 

San Francisco. He has been to Puget Sound, and has 
had a blessed revival on board all the way up." In 
tember, 1880, I received a line from our brother, 
who is now in command of a life-saving station in Hum- 
it Bay, California, in which he says, " I am still in 
the service of the Master. In all these twenty-five years, 
I lias been my helper. Every day will I bless and 
praise his holy name. I will praise him forever and ever." 
As a fitting sequel to the above, it may be stated that 
the three brethren referred to, were by no means desti- 
tute of zeal, nor were their labors barren of results. 



CONVERTS. 119 

The brother who went to Denmark spent a year there in 
tract and Bible distribution, and in oriier missionary 
work, after which he returned to the United States, and 
as a Christian sailor in the forecastle, went from ship to 
ship, doing his best for the conversion of his shipmates. 
He wrote me of one vessel which arrived in San Fran- 
cisco with ten converted sailors in the forecastle, seven 
of whom had been converted on the passage out, through 
the faithfulness of the other three. In another vessel, he 
wrote to me : " There are five of us who are trying to 
serve God. One of these, a young man of twenty one, 
converted through his influence, joined the Baptist 
church, and intended to study for the ministry." In 
1 86 1 this dear brother returned again to his missionary 
work in Denmark, where he married. In 1863 he was 
called to " a purer world and a brighter day," and 
departed for his heavenly home in the full triumph of 
" the faith once delivered to the saints." 



CHAPTER VI. 

A WORD IN SEASON — THE YOUNG HERETIC. 

A word in season — Parents' intentions — Columbia College — Dissipation — 
A whaling voyage — Sigk among strangers — Not fit to live — Prayer for 
mercy — John iii. 16— In despair — Song of praise — The young heretic — 
Prayer on a raft — Kneels only to God — Ship fever— Seat to an academy 
— Study arrested — Father converted — Missionary labor — Ycung Jesuit — 
Better a heretic than a Jesuit— Long silence — Correspondence re-opened 
\ joyful hope — Sunk off Tv bee Island — Battle of Bull Run--Wounded 
— New Spttth Wales- -Married — Severe affliction — Return to France — 
Employed as interpreter— A sailor's gratitude— In seventeen battles — 
Married again — Vitality of the ijood seed — Emigrates — Work in New 
Caledonia— Jesuits ejected— Still working. 

Ox the 1st of June, 1855, a pleasant interview occur- 
red at the Sailors' Home. On the porch was a young 
man whom I recognized as having been a boarder while 
I was there, some two months before. I asked him : 
" Where from ? Where bound ?" In the course of con- 
versation I remarked, " I wish you to remember, in all 
your voyages, that the last voyage will come. You 
must keep a bright lookout. There is a weather and a 
lee shore at hand, which ever you prefer you will make. 
You must look to the Saviour." He gazed at me with 
an expression of deep reverence, and said : " I think I 
am looking to the Saviour, sir." My interest was imme- 



A WORD IN SEASON. 121 

diately increased, and I replied : " Well, I am pleased 
to hear that." " Yes, sir," said he, " and it arose from a 
word spoken by you, sir, seme two months ago." He 
then gave me an account of the means by which the 
change was brought about. I spent the forenoon of the 
next day with him in my study, and on leaving he 
promised to write me an account of his life. In a few 
days I received a letter, in which he says : 

1 ■ In accordance with my promise, I have written the inclosed, 
in the hope that it may prove of some interest to yourself, and 
give additional encouragement to those who are interested in the 
salvation of seamen. I feel assured that my letter will give you 
joy, as it shows that one more immortal spirit has turned to God, 
through your instrumentality ; that the simple and casual 
remarks so quietly made were followed by the influence of the 
Holy Spirit, causing a deep conviction of sin, then repentance, 
and finally faith and hope in Christ. Some of the circumstances 
attending the change which has occurred, through the mercy of 
God, have already been stated ; but to show how great has been 
the mercy extended, I will give you an outline of my career until 
the present time. 

4 * In early life the advantages of an education were afforded 
me by a pious father, whose intention it was to educate a son for 
the ministry. A kind, loving mother and affectionate brothers 
and sisters were ready to assist me to the extent of their ability ; 
but unfortunately, as it afterwards proved, at my own solicitation 
I was sent from home at the age of fourteen, and entered an 
academy, located in a village in the northern part of the State. 
Previous to my departure resolutions had been formed, promises 
given, and my parents had prepared a series of written rules for 
my guidance while absent. Although residing with relatives, 
scarcely two months had passed ere I had entered upon a down- 
ward course. By degrees objectionable associations were formed, 
and habits of smoking, chewing and drinking. My parents 
6 



[22 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

being informed o[ my evil course, instantly recalled me, and 
while they wept over my early tall, forgave my transgressions. I 
was then placed in the Columbia College Grammar Institute, and 
for a short time made rapid progress ; but I soon formed improper 
friendships, became weary of the restraints of the school-room, and 
longed to become a merchant. My wishes were gratified, and I 
was placed in a country si ore as junior clerk ; but soon becom- 
ing dissatisfied, and having yielded to temptation, I was again 
recalled. 

" It is unnecessary to say that my course was still downward. 
My parents forgave me again and again, and procured excellent 
situations for me, but all promises were broken as soon as I was 
from under the watchful eye of my father, and my career was 
marked by dissipation. By my disobedience and ingratitude, 
my parents at length lost confidence in me. My father's hair 
had grown white with sorrow, my mother's heart was bowed 
clown with grief, and the affection of brothers and sisters began 
to wane. In the month of September, 1849, I was placed on 
board a whaling ship, bound on a cruise in the Arctic Ocean, in 
hopes that it would be the means of correcting my evil habits. 

1 ' We had a prosperous voyage, and arrived home again, after 
an absence of nineteen months. As my outfit had been given 
me, there were two hundred and forty-five dollars in my locker 
when we were paid off. But this was soon disposed of, sailor- 
fashion, and I once more shipped in a whaler. The second 
_re was not successful. We passed through many dangers 
and much hardship, and long before it was ended I was dis- 
charged into a hospital at Tahiti. There, in sickness, thousands 
of miles from home, amid strangers, I thought of those I loved, 
although I had wronged them, and a resolution was made to 
lead an upright life, should I ever be enabled to reach New York. 
Through the mercy of God 1 was once more allowed to clasp the 
hands of my relatives and friends, and receive a welcome of which 
I undeserving. 

" All this time I was living in violation of God's law. The 



"QUENCH NOT THE SPIRIT." 1 23 

name of God was only uttered to curse, while religion was scoffed 
at and made a means of sport. As soon as my health was 
restored, I again became a clerk, and received a fair salary. I 
went smoothly for a few months, but temptation came, and I had 
not the strength to resist. I did not give way entirely to dissipa- 
tion, but would be steady at times ; and as a new influence was 
brought to bear upon my life, it was hoped that an entire and 
permanent change would take place. Suddenly an accident 
occurred which brought me upon a bed of pain for weary 
months, and it was believed to be one of the consequences 
attending a life of dissipation. My life had been . spared, as it 
were, by a miracle, yet my heart gave no thanks to God, whose 
mercy permitted me to live. This dispensation, instead of 
awakening me to a sense of my lost condition, seemed to make 
me more careless and indifferent. Again I disgraced my rela- 
tives and friends, and as my conduct had estranged me from 
them all, I left home in anger, determined never again to cross 
the threshold until I had become a better man. 

" I had outraged all propriety, trampled on every holy feeling, 
caused my parents days and nights of sleepless agony, defied God 
and man. I was not fit to live, and I cannot conceive how my 
life could have been spared by that infinite Being whom I had 
reviled, blasphemed and hated. The next day after my arrival 
at the Sailors' home, by the persuasions of a friend, I was 
induced to sign the pledge, and resolved to keep it. 

"One evening, while seated at a table in the reading-room, 
conversing with some seamen, lately returned from various voy- 
ages, an invitation was given to attend the house of prayer. I 
accepted, through motives of curiosity. While listening care- 
lessly and indifferently to the words of Divine truth, the express- 
ion, 'Quench not the spirit/ attracted my attention. The words 
and remarks following them became deeply engraven upon my 
mind, and I could not forget them. The next day I sailed for 
Baltimore ; and during my absence, often thought about a fu- 
ture existence, although endeavoring to shake off the feeling. 



124 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

i my return to New York, after an absence of a month, I 

led the li rod, for I wished to rid my mind of all 

thought upon the subject o\ religion. Still these words, ' Quench 

Spirit, 9 were ringing in my ears, audi could not drive 

them a v. 

i one week previous to my departure for the West In* 

while conversing- with one of my companions at the Home, 
1 was invited to attend church, but replied, * Not to-night ; to- 
morrow — by-and-by. ' You then remarked, "' Now is the time — 
to-morrow may never be yours, my friend/ Those words fell 
on my heart with so much force, that I began to think deeply : 

morrow may not be mine. Then if the voyage of life 
should end this night, where, where would it commence again? ■ 
During the whole week after this, my mind was greatly depressed 
in view of the judgment certain to overtake my soul. But I 

I not pray — I did not dare to pray Our voyage had com- 
menced. I had left the Home without informing any one of 
my Btata o^ mind, for I hoped the feeling would prove transitory. 
The Gist Jay passed by, and while cleaning up the decks 
my mind was diverted from its serious thoughts ; but when 
all b uiet, and the shades of night began to steal over 

u>. the impression came back with ten-fold force. My mental 
dist; > great that I fell upon my knees, and prayed for 

y, until called to take my turn at the helm. As soon as 
our watch was relieved, I hastened below to read my Bible, a 
Bible that had been my companion for eleven years, but al- 
ined at the bottom of my chest, bag or trunk. 

A [opened the sacred pages, my eyes fell upon the words 
in John iii. 16 : ' God SO loved the world that he gave his only 
. that whosoever believeth on him should not per- 
ish, but have everlasting life.' While pondering over the infinite 
an 1 Redeemer, a sense of quiet filled my soul. 
. Igment was lost in the thought of ingratitude to 
him who had experienced the agonies of the cross and died for 

nice As I continued to read, my heart sank lower and 



A CONVERT. 125 

lower. It could not be that such love had been manifested for 
me. No, no ; I had so long slighted the advantages and bless- 
ings which had clustered around my pathway in life from in- 
fancy, so long disregarded the precepts, entreaties, and promises 
revealed in God's word, so long denied my Saviour and defied 
my Creator, that it could not be possible he died for me. No, 
no ! I had broken all laws and sinned beyond forgiveness ; 
never could I receive pardon. 

' t Day after day passed in this manner, and my agony of mind 
was too great to admit of sleep. My Bible was my constant 
companion, but every verse seemed to condemn me. I felt my- 
self lost forever — the Saviour could not forgive. Two weeks pass- 
ed away in this manner, and my mind was still bowed down un- 
der a heavy conviction of my great sin. While pacing the deck 
one night, the dark heavy clouds obscured the sky like a gloomy 
pall. It was like my heart ; darkness overspread all, and there 
was not a ray of light to shine through the gloom. No hope ! 
No hope ! I was in despair. Suddenly I recollected that the 
blessed Saviour forgave even those who slew him, and my heart 
leaped for joy, for there was hope that even my sins could be for- 
given. I fell upon my knees by the windlass and implored for- 
giveness for the Redeemers sake. I felt that I was a lost, 
guilty wretch, unfit to live ; but Christ the Redeemer had given 
himself a ransom for me, and I had faith in the efficacy of his 
blood to cleanse my soul from sin. I gave myself wholly to God. 
My supplications for mercy and forgiveness were changed to a 
song of praise and joy. My Bible now possessed a dear interest. 
Where before it had condemned me or appeared dull, it was 
now a source of consolation and delight. 

" God be praised ! It was his work ! The unfruitful tree 
which for twenty-five years had cumbered the ground, had at last 
brought forth fruit. Dear brother, pray for me that strength may 
be given me from above to continue firm in the good cause ; 
that temptations may be withstood, by God's help and blessing. 
Pray that I may live to the glory of God and the advancement of 



FII rv vkaks amom; sailors. 

m an earth. I am but a polluted worm 
1 I 1. May I ever love and trust the Saviour and 
do his will. 

"O, may the heart of my white-haired father and mother be 
lened when they hear of the conversion of their son. May 
it is an answer to their prayers. God bless your efforts, 
my lear brother, and may you behold the little seed quietly 
pped by the wayside, springing up into a goodly tree, bearing 
fruit unto eternal life ; and may the hearts of Christians be cheer- 
ed by receiving daily answers to their prayers for seamen. 

"N. T." 
THE YOUNG HERETIC. 
Tn the month of September, 1855, there came to the 
Sailors' Home a young French lad, about fifteen years of 
He was found by our missionary and invited to 
church, where he was awakened to a sense of his sinful- 
After a few days, his heart softened under the 
preaching of the truth, accompanied as it was with pri- 
vate conversation and prayer, until, by degrees, the light 
Ice in upon his soul, and he found peace in an entire 
.nation of his spirit, soul and body, to Christ. From 
conversation had with him in my study, I learned that 
he was born in a village of Brittany, in September, 1840. 
His parents being Roman Catholics, he was, for the first 
ten years of his life, instructed faithfully in the tenets of 
Romanism. He seems to have been naturally inclined 
to piety. He was conscientious, gentle, and obedient to 
his parents, intelligent and quick to learn; but according 
to his own statements, he never considered the religious 
Rome conducive to the cultivation of a true 
In short, he never took kindly to either the 
the teachers of that church. A few years 
re I became acquainted with him, he came into the 






THE YOUNG HERETIC. \2J 

possession of a copy of the Bible, through a Protestant 
friend. He read his new treasure with eagerness, and 
soon learned from it, that many things demanded by 
the priesthood found no countenance in the word of 
God. 

When he was eleven years old, he went to sea, witli 
an uncle, in a brig called the St. Jaques, bound to Cadiz, 
and thence to Newfoundland, for a cargo of fish. On the 
passage home she ran into an iceberg, and was so badly 
stove that the crew were compelled to abandon her. 
Louis and his uncle, who had extemporized a raft, were 
saved. But they had only time to secure a few pounds 
of bread, a hatchet, a harpoon and a broken oar. In this 
frail craft they were drifting about among floating masses 
of ice for nearly three days. This was in the month of 
February. The cold was intense, and to prevent their 
feet from freezing they were compelled to keep them 
under water. The poor boy, in this perilous condition, 
thought of home, of the teachings of his parents, and 
only wished he was once more safe on solid ground, 
promising himself that he would stay there. The situa- 
tion becoming more and more unendurable, he feared 
that they must die before relief could come. He thought 
of God as the hearer of prayer, and asked his uncle if he 
might cry to Heaven for help. He was very angry, and 
with an oath bade him think no more of such nonsense. 
Afterwards, however, he relented, and gave the boy per- 
mission to pray. 

Louis fell upon his knees, and besought God to save 
them from the threshold of death, or prepare them to 
meet him in heaven. While he was praying, his uncle 
knelt beside him, and wept with him. God heard that 



128 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

prayer. In the morning they were picked up by a 
Spanish schooner. 

He was soon at sea again, despite the dangers through 
which he had passed, and the promises he had made to 
himself. The first voyage never did kill the true sailor. 
His next voyage was to China, whence he returned after 
two years. On reaching home he was seized by the 
Government and compelled to enter the naval marine. 
But from that enforced service, after doing duty about 
ten days, he deserted, shipped on board an American 
vessel and came to the United States. 

An incident which he related to me will serve to illus- 
trate the independence of character he possessed, and his 
fearlessness in what he considered the right. After he 
had begun to read the scriptures referred to, he was sent 
by his mother, one Friday, to the priest to confession. 
He was a.ked by the ghostly father if he had eaten meat 
that day ? He replied : " Yes ! I have eaten meat for 
breakfast, and intend to eat meat for dinner." 

The priest was astounded at such a confession and pur- 
pose, called him a young heretic, and commanded him 
to kneel down. But he refused, saying he would kneel 
to God, but not to man. He was then questioned as 
to the reason for his rebellion against the teachings and 
discipline of the Church. He replied that he had read 
that God gave meat to be eaten, and had only prohibit- 
ed the blood. The holy father then demanded to see 
the book that contained these heresies. The boy brought 
him the Bible ; and though he was importunate in his 
demands for its return, lie never saw it again. The 
effect of this priest's conduct on his young mind was such 
as to alienate him still more from Rome. His sea-life, 



THE YOUNG HERETIC. 1 29 

from this time, was more and more careless, until he 
reached New York, in the fall of 1854. Here he was 
stricken down with ship fever, and lay in the Quarantine 
Hospital, his spirit hovering between life and death for 
six or seven weeks. 

Recovering from this imminent danger, he returned 
again to the sea, and sailed out of New York, until he 
was fallen in with by our missionary, who brought him 
to me. A few days after this conversation he sailed 
again. On the evening before his departure he said to 
me : " I know that on board the vessel I shall suffer 
temptations and persecutions. But, I trust in the Lord 
Jesus. He will give me strength to bear them, or will 
bring me out of them all." 

Believing that the lad had clear views of his duty and 
of his privilege, of his own weakness and of his imputed 
strength, I gave him a copy of the New Testament and 
of the " Christian's Daily Food," in his own language, and 
bade him farewell. Three months to a day had passed, 
when he came back to my study full of love and zeal for 
the Master. He said, " I love Christ more and more, 
because he has been so good to me." He made several 
voyages between New York and the South and Mexico, 
maintaining his Christian character. In October, 1856, he 
united with the Mariner's church. Here he displayed 
so many sterling qualities, and was withal of so teach- 
able a spirit and so apt to learn, that it was deemed ad- 
visable to take him from the sea and give him an educa- 
tion that would fit him for still larger usefulness in the 
ministry. Funds were provided to this end, and on the 
17th of November he was received under the care of a 
committee of the Presbytery of New York. It was deter- 
6* 



130 FIFTY VEARS among sailors. 

mined to send him at once to an academy. The ladies of 
the church came together, made up articles of clothing, 
Ming, etc, and fitted him out. On the 1st of Decem- 
ber I took him to Woodbridge, New Jersey, and placed 
him in the academy of Rev. Thos. H. Morris. Only a 
few days after he was lodged in this pleasant home, he 
received a letter from the priest of his native village, up- 
braiding him for becoming a heretic. He had written 
to his mother informing her of his conversion, and she, 
being a rigid Catholic, gave the letter to the priest. 
] lence these tears. In his letter to me, dated December 
1 2th, 1856, he says : 

u Thank God, my faith is already strong enough to resist his 

•lis. Ho seems horrified at my purpose to study for the 

ministry, and commands me to leave the school and cling to the 

first religion which he taught me. But I am firm. Christ is 

my Shepherd. I feel that he will not let me go astray." 

Louis progressed favorably with his academic studies, 
and soon won his way to the hearts of the principal and 
his family, as well as of the students. He grew in grace, 
as he increased in knowledge, took part in young 
people's prayer-meetings, and gave general satisfaction 
in his studies as well as in his daily walk. In a letter 
written to me, dated March 26th, 1857, he says: "I 
often think of the Mariners' Church. I can never forget 
that it was there that I was born again. I am anxious 
to know whether there arc any more souls brought to 

Writi in, June 22nd, he says: "I have received 

another letter from my parents, who are in trouble, and 

h me to come home. I cannot any longer resist their 



THE YOUNG HERETIC. 131 

appeal. Mr. Morris has seen the letter, and he thinks it 
is my duty to go. My father is now an exile in Eng- 
land. He, too, writes me to come home and help my 
mother." He adds : 

"Now I have told you my misfortunes. I will also tell you 
something which is better. My father, who was no better than 
a heathen, has been convicted of his sins, and has found peace in 
believing on the Son of God. 

"This is the work of the Holy Spirit, who has opened his eyes 
to the truth as it is revealed in the word of God In reading 
the New Testament he was sad at the thought that it was his sins 
which caused the sufferings of Christ. Yet he grieved the Holy 
Spirit by trying to persuade himself that Jesus was not ' the Christ. ' 
To fortify himself in this belief he took up the Old Testament, 
hoping to prove from it that Jesus was not the anointed of God. 
Christ would not, however, that he should thus perish. For on 
opening the Bible, his eye fell upon the 53rd chapter of Isaiah, 
in which the prophet foretells the sufferings of Christ, and the 
glory that should follow. It was then, for the first time, that he 
bowed down at the foot of the cross, and with a broken heart 
asked forgiveness at the hands of his heavenly Father, through 
Christ. " 

The result of all this was that Louis, after enjoying 
the advantages of the academy for six months, aban- 
doned his studies, and left us permanently, to our grief 
and disappointment, as we had anticipated a life of 
usefulness for him. How true it is — " Man proposes, 
but God disposes !" 

I did not hear from our young friend again until the 
month of August, 1859, when he returned to New York. 
In a letter received from him on the 20th of that month, 
he says : 



i;j FIFTY YEARS among SAILORS. 

"I wish to - JTOU some of my experience, since I left 

ago, When I was brought to Christ to seek the 
tfmy soul through him alone, you gave me a NewTes- 
nt in my own language, and directed me especially to read 
•1 according to the Evangelist John. I did so, and was 
nee convinced of the unscriptural character of the religion in 
which I was instructed, and the blessedness of the one I was 
:it to abhor. 
"A< a consequence of that change, I had a desire that others 
should see it in the same light. Trusting therefore to the same 
r which had opened my eyes to the truth, I began to work 
it end. My first essay was at Vera Cruz, Mexico. Our 
vessel had been supplied, before leaving New York, with several 
Testaments. These I took ashore and distributed 
among the Mexicans. The result is known to God, and to 
who received them alone. But it is of the Testament you 
gave me that I wish especially to inform you. When I 
ud home, after leaving my studies, I felt there was an im- 
mense wi >rk for me to do. I was subjected to continual perse- 
•ns from the priests, and even from my own relations, but 
all these things sunk into insignificance when compared with the 
■nts of joy I had, when permitted to do something for 
the Lord. 

14 1 will relate one incident connected with that Testament In 
our village, was a young man who had been a school-fellow of 
lie was now at a Jesuit college, preparing for the priest- 
Ile knew that I went to sea, and he had heard that I 
til en into the hands of heretics. 
• I >f my arrival home, and having an affection for me, 

he resolved to try and bring me back to the worship of the Vir- 
and to the bosom of the church in which alone he be- 
lle came to me full of zeal, and for a 
die darkness ofniy way, of the danger of 
my position ind of the nature and consequence of excommuni- 
cation. At length he paused, and watched my countenance, to 



THE YOUNG HERETIC 1 33 

mark the effects of his exhortation. But I assured him that the 
excommunication he dreaded had nothing of horror in it for me. 
I then gave him my reasons for the course I had taken in turn- 
ing to Christ, and looking to him alo?ie for my salvation. He 
was astonished that I quoted so many passages from the very life 
of Christ to sustain that religion which he conceived sure dam- 
nation. He was, as he told me, studying a Latin New Testa- 
ment, but he could not understand it. Then it was that I gave 
him the French Testament which I had received from you. He 
began to read it; and the result was the light of truth poured into 
his soul. Before he left me, I asked him to let me pray with 
him. He consented. We bowed together, and God blessed 
that prayer. He was astonished to find that instead of saying 
"Sancta Maria Mater Dei — ora pro nobis, peccatoribus, ' (Holy 
Mary, mother of God pray for us sinners, ) I went to God direct, 
as David did, saying, ' Aie pitie de moi, O Dieu, aie pitie de moi, 
car mon ame se retire vers toi, et je me retire sous Tombre de 
tes ailes, jusque a ce que les calamite, soient passees (Ps. lvii. 1. 
He listened to that prayer, and though it was so simple, he said 
he had never heard anything so much like a prayer before. 
God blessed that young man. He felt no inclination to return 
to his college studies. What was more astonishing, his father 
was overjoyed, for the Jesuits had taken him against his father's 
will. A few days after our interview the young convert came 
and took me to his home. His father received me with a 
pleasant smile on his face, and said, ' Welcome, young heretic ! 
You restored my son to me. It is better for him to be a heretic 
than a Jesuit/ 

" When I last saw this young disciple, about two months since, 
I wept with joy to see the work he had accomplished for Christ. 
He has been a heretic now for nearly two years, and has no wish 
ever to be anything else. Now, Mr. Jones, this is not what 1 
have done, but what Christ and the New Testament have done. 
God forbid that I should glory in anything but the cross of Christ, 
to whom alone all glory is due. 

" Humbly yours, Louis le Mescabl" 



134 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

I never have scon the young Frenchman since. Ele- 
ven years passed away without a line from him. I 
often thought of him, but feared he was dead. I felt sure 
that if alive, he would have communicated with me, for 
I know that he loved us all. Perhaps he had gone down 
in some foundering ship or been dashed to pieces on some 
-bound coast, and his bones had mingled with those 
can's myriad dead. Or perhaps in some far off 
land he had been stricken with disease, and nursed by 
stranger hands, had fallen asleep in Jesus, and been bur- 
ied in an unknown grave. Judge of my surprise then, 
dear reader, w r hen I received a letter, in his well-known 
handwriting, from Havre, dated February 1st, 1870. It 
was to me like receiving a message from the grave. It 
said : 

" It is now nearly eleven years since I wrote to you. I have 

1 tossed about the world and suffered many hardships and 

family losses. Great sorrows have fallen to my lot, but I have al- 

had you in my thoughts, and indeed all my friends in New 

York. I could not blot from my memory the many good men 

took such an int.-rest in my future life. Especially him, 

to my mind the truths of the Bible, as contrasted 

with the Romish fables which I was taught when a child. You 

will believe me, when I tell you that I have never ceased to be a 

:. heart and soul, and that my greatest hope is to die in 

that faith. You will acid greatly to the obligations I owe you 

alrea n lillg me a note, that I may know how all my old 

I'Ih: happiness of hearing from them and from you 

l joy which 1 have long anticipated. n 

ided immediately! and on the 8th of the next 
month received the following, which I will introduce by 
Baying, that when Louis left us, he seemed to be laboring 






CORRESPONDENCE RE-OPENED. 135 

under a difficulty which I could not fully understand ; a 
burden appeared to rest upon his mind, arising from what 
I conceived to be a voluntary humility on his part, a sense 
not only of unfitness, but of presumption in seeking the 
high and holy office of the ministry. His conscience was 
really sensitive on that point, although the honor was 
not in reality of his seeking. This much, it is necessary 
to state, in explanation of some expressions in his letter, 
which runs thus : 

"My dear Friend — Your kind answer has more than justified 
my faith. I left you in 1859, convinced that my position was a 
false one, and that under the circumstances I could not possess a 
clean heart and an upright spirit. I therefore left you, not for 
want of affection for you, but rather the reverse. I hoped to find 
peace for my mind amid the toils and hardships of life. God has 
deigned to hear the prayers you offered in my behalf, and even 
my poor supplications also for his guidance. To his gracious 
control, do I now ascribe my earnest faith and my joyful hope. 
He has brought me to this state through many sorrows and afflic- 
tions. I have submitted to what I believed to be the will of 
God. Yet I have been broken down and wretched. But it is a 
blessed thing to have God for my Father, my refuge, to whom I 
can look in all my troubles, even in those which I may have 
brought upon myself through my own imprudence. " 

In a letter written more recently, explaining in detail 
his reasons for abandoning his studies, he says : 

" A letter written to me by the priest of our village, urging me 
to come home, stated that my mother had been bed-ridden for 
six months, and was perhaps dying. On reading that, I had no 
more courage for study ; I therefore started for home. I worked 
my passage from New York to Havre, walked from Havre to 
Paimpol in Brittany, and found a desolate home. I wrote to 



156 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

the Rev. Mr. Sawtell, seamen's chaplain in Havre. He loaned 
QOUgh to transfer mv mother to a hospital at St. 
me, where her leg was amputated at the thigh. Leaving 
here, I looted it to Havre, shipped for Boston and New Or- 
leans, and returned in another vessel to Havre ; but hearing 
that my mother had died — which I afterwards learned was not 
true — I returned to New York, thence to New Orleans, saileJ 
thence for Liverpool, was driven on a reef, sprung a leak, tried 
to 1 make Savannah, but sunk off Tybee Island. I returned to 
Havre, obtained employment ashore as a courier, became tired 
of the land, sailed again for New Orleans, and reached there 
about the time the first shot was fired at Sumter. Thence I 
went to Baltimore, joined a corps of volunteers, became a 
United States soldier, served thirteen months for the preservation 
of the Union, was at the first battle of Bull Run, got wounded 
in the right hand and was discharged. Instead of re-enlisting I 
took passage to Liverpool, shipped thence for Calcutta; left the 
ship there, and engaged with a Florentine gentleman who was 
selling statuary. I went with him to Cawnpore, Benares and Delhi, 
an 1 becoming weary again of the shore, came back to Calcutta 
and shipped for Sidney, New South Wales. . 

11 That was my last voyage as employee. I left the ship there 

and obtained employment in a hotel. Some time afterwards I 

made the acquaintance of a respectable Christian family, con- 

ng of a widow lady, having a son and daughter at home 

with her. In June, 1863, I married the daughter, and then, 

with heartfelt thanks to God for this his last best gift, we kneeled 

in prayer, and consecrated ourselves to him. I begged him for 

Jesus to preserve us to each other, and to direct me in the 

:nn obligations I had entered into with her whom 

rn to love and protect. I now enjoyed a short season 

of n All past uncertainties seemed to have dis- 

I thought I saw for myself a bright and happy future. 

My Wlfi 1 all my loving hopes. Mine was a happy 

home. But in six short weeks death came into the circle. My 



SEVERE AFFLICTION. 137 

brother-in-law, to whom I was fondly attached for his sterling 
qualities of mind and heart, was taken from us. My wife and I 
then took his place in caring for the widow. This was for me a 
pleasant duty. Time ran on, grief for the dead moderated, and 
we were once more happy. My employer promoted me to a 
higher position, and increased my salary, so that I was enabled to 
lay by a portion for future exigencies. 

"At length a child was born unto us. Once more I praised 
the Lord. I wept tears of joy and gratitude on hearing the voice 
of my first-born. But from that time my earthly happiness was 
brief. My wife's health was shattered by her confinement In 
five months my child died in her mother's arms. It was a sad 
blow to me, as it was so unexpected. I left her well when I 
went to business in the morning, and fifteen minutes after my 
return, in the evening, she was cold in death. I had fondly 
hoped to have this child live, that I might bestow my love and 
labor upon her ; but it was the Lord's will that my hopes should 
not be realized. My wife's health was again broken by a second 
confinement, and, after lingering only six months, she, too, went 
to her Saviour, whom she had loved and trusted. Our second 
child had died two days before her mother. My dear wife's death 
was calm, peaceful and full of hope. I listened to her weak voice 
saving, ' The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want. ' Holding my 
hand in hers, she bade me cheer up, and trusting always in Jesus, 
to meet her and our little ones in heaven. Shortly after this her 
spirit passed away, while her dying gaze was fixed upon me. 

"I buried them all in the same grave in the Presbyterian 
church-yard. On the grave stone I had inscribed these lines : 

1 A few short years of evil pass'd, 

We reach the happy shore, 
Where death-divided friends, at last 
Shall meet to part no more. ' 

"Such then, my dear friend, is a part of my story. During 
my trials I had reason to bless God that I found, while yet a 



138 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

h a Christian friend as you. For in my troubles I 
red your I when you turned my heart towards 

him whom you taught me to look upon as the only Mediator 
en God and man. So much sorrow, anxiety and watching 
11 a bed of sickness. L was unconscious of pain for some 
time, as the fever affected my brain. After God had restored me 
my employer sent me through the interior towns, on a 
•ur. The change had a good effect on my health, and 
in February, 1869, I started on my journey to my childhood's 
h< >me. I reached France last June, too late however to meet my 
Either, who had gone to his rest a short time before. I did not 
find the enjoyment I had anticipated. I refused, from principle, 
ler any masses for the repose of my father's soul, or to pay 
any portion of the expenses incurred for that purpose by my mo- 
ther, brother and sister. I was therefore treated with coldness, 
if not with aversion, at least I fancied so. I therefore turned my 
on my native village once more, and I believe for the last 
time. I left sufficient means however to provide for my mother's 
wants while she lives, and came to Havre, where I am now em- 
yed as interpreter by American and English travellers." 

After making minute inquiries concerning all the mem- 
bers of our family, he says, in closing: 

' ' Present my highest respects to Mrs. Jones ; tell her I have 

a thought of her who took me by the hand and called me 

hi r son. As for you, my dear father in the Lord, whatever may 

n my wanderings, I have never forgotten to whom lowed 

and still owe my first knowledge of the religion of Jesus. Tell 

all the good people who befriended me in my youth, that al- 

r see them on earth, lam yet in the band of 

and shall see them in heaven." 

Another letter was received in the following June, in 
which he the quarrel then in progress between 

France and Germany, and declares he has no sympathy 



IN SEVENTEEN BATTLES. 1 39 

with war. If it comes, he will have no hand in it, but 
will come to America or go again to Australia. He also 
speaks very gratefully of the letter I had written him, and 
says : " I feel that a sight of you would bring such happi- 
ness back to my soul as I have not tasted for years. I 
treasure your letter among the dearest records I possess, 
and read it often. For you lead my thoughts away from 
the cares and anxieties of the world, to the true seat of 
rest and happiness above." In the opening of the next 
year, I received a communication from him, dated Janu- 
ary 24th, 1 87 1, from Octerville, at which point a part 
of the French army was posted. In it he says : 

1 ' For the last four months I have taken up arms, in order to 
render my feeble help, as in duty bound, to save my native land 
from the ruin into which our enemies would plunge us. In the 
beginning of the war I did not sympathise with the cause, nor 
with the men who brought us into the strife. But after the 
capitulation of Sedan the cause became sacred. I saw that the 
motive of the Prussians was not only to conquer our armies and 
our government, but to send desolation throughout the whole 
land. Then it was, that, along with many other patriots, I en- 
listed. Since then I have done my duty 7 to my country, humbly 
praying the Lord to direct me, submitting my fate to his de- 
cision. It may be that this is the end for which he has hitherto 
spared my worthless life, and I may fall in the defence of my 
country. I hope this war will awaken my countrymen to a true 
sense of religion and to a dependence on God, who is the only 
wise ruler of nations. 

"For myself I can say, since I have cast my lot among my 
comrades in arms, the Lord has sustained me in duty and pro- 
tected my life. Many of those who joined when I did, have found 
death on the battle-fields — I say battle-fields, for I was in seven- 
teen engagements during the war." 



I40 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

He closes by signing himself Marichal de Logis, 
de la batterie de Metrailleuse du Havre, first Division, 
nd Brigade. 91 
I wrote immediately as lie had directed, but years rolled 
rid I heard no more from my young friend of 1856. 
1 could only account for his silence by the supposition 
that he, too, had fallen among the slain in his country's 
ace. All track of him seemed to be absolutely lost. 
ters sent to him had brought no response, and yet I 
could not find it in my heart to settle down to the convic- 
tion of his death, without making at least one more effort 
to find him. I wrote again to Havre, and succeeded in 
procuring the information that my young friend had 
passed through the war unscathed, had married, and gone 
in from his native land to try a new country. His 
address was given me as " Nouvelle Caledonia/' 

Here then I was once more on his track. Being anx- 
ious to know how the good Lord was leading him, and 
tg his sweet spirit for his own glory, I sent a letter 
ding away to the extreme East, as on a kind of for- 
lorn hope, to bring him again, if possible, within the circle 
of my correspondence. My letter was dated May 21st, 
1880. It found him, and elicited the following in reply, 
which adds another chapter of incidents to his already 
checkered and eventful history. It has this delightful 
feature, at least. It proves the vitality of the seed which , 

n in his young heart a quarter of a century ago. 
It shows, moreover, that the quality of the seed has not 
ited, though carried so far from its native soil. I 
imunication entire, because it illustrates the 
romance which so often pertains to real life, and is a fit- 
ting close to a ^tory which bears so many marks of an 



WORK IN NEW CALEDONIA. 141 

overruling Providence, as well as of the blessed results 
of our labor for Christ among these wanderers of the sea. 
It is dated at Noumea, New Caledonia, July 24th, 1880. 

" My dear Father — So, with your usual kindness, you have 
wished to find out and hear something of the poor stranger 
you so generously harbored some twenty years ago. Had not 
your welcome letter brought with it the sad news of your beloved 
wife's death, how happy I should have been to welcome it. 
How can I receive the news without shedding tears for the mem- 
ory of one who called the outcast boy her son, and whom I also 
called by the sweet name of mother? I am glad that I was per- 
mitted once more before she departed, to let her know that I had 
not forgotten her. May she not, even now, see my sorrow, as I 
pen these lines with bitter tears, and forgive all my ingratitude ? 
And you, beloved friend, will you not excuse the boy? Cares, 
hardship and toil have been my lot since you last heard from 
me — yet not wholly unmingled with pleasure and contentment. 

" My life was spired during the war in which my country 
was engaged, although my sufferings were great, both physically 
and mentally. But like all other phases of life, it passed away to 
make room for other scenes. Now I am once more blessed with 
a beloved wife and have four sweet children, two boys and two 
girls. My eldest, a boy, was born at sea, on our passage from 
France to this place, in lat. 4 6° south and long. 55 east of Paris, 
in the Southern Indian Ocean, and in a cyclone. The other 
three were born here in Noumea. 

"I am doing as well as I can expect in business, being a part- 
ner in one of the principal firms here. I am not getting rich, for 
the country has passed through a series of financial difficulties, 
during the last three or four years. Yet we are holding our 
own. and I have great hopes of success. My spare time is de- 
voted to the interests of Protestantism, and to the welfare of the 
public schools, from which, after a hard battle, we ha\e succeeded 
in ejecting the holy brothers, of the Jesuitical institution, and 



[43 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

them by lay teachers. We hope to sec our children, 

. in this land of convicts, Jesuits and savages, receive a suit- 

.. Rev. Mr, Charbonniaud, our well-beloved Prot- 

. has helped us as far as his official position will 

allow. 

"When, dear father, shall we meet? Will it be here or 
above ? Which ever it be, one heart will ever beat for you, un- 
known, perhaps, to all else but itself, no matter what tim 2 or 
parateus. That heart is mine. The young lad, 
ring, unsettled, careless perhaps, of a changeable disposi- 
h.ul, and has one thing as big as any man, and that was 
and is his heart. That has never changed. It remembers — 
what? your kindness ? your hospitality ? No! these terms are 
too cold. It remembers your fatherly love. When you speak 
to your children, the eldest of whom may remember me as in a 
dream, tell them that there is at a great distance, far away in the 
South Pacific Ocean, one man who would like to press them to 
his heart, r or their parents' sake. Pardon this letter, which I 
rcely been able to write on account of the emotion 
which every- remembrance of you brings to me. Remember me 
hildien, and to all my friends, and accept for yourself 
the assurance of my affection. 

"Yours truly, L. Le Mescam." 

I may add, in closing this interesting sketch, what I 

have learned from other sources of information, viz., that 

the eight years spent by my young friend in New South 

Wales, were by no means years of inactivity in the 

Master's vineyard. I have seen articles written for the 

. hich show that he was busy with his pen, as well 

vith his tongue, in the cause of philanthropy ; that 

►there 1 v. I was in sympathy with the 

poor an L He was fearlessly and actively cn- 

;ed in church work, took a deep interest in the Sab- 



STILL WORKING. 143 

bath-school, and in the cause of Temperance. In short, 
he was about his Master's business. Faithful, affection- 
ate, full of sympathy, self-denying, patient to labor, and 
strong to endure, he gained the confidence of his em- 
ployer, the affection of his pastor, Rev. J. McGibbon, 
and the good will of the community in which he dwelt. 
His life also bore testimony to the loving favor of his 
God. The good seed of the Word had taken deep root 
in the soil of his young heart, already prepared by the 
Great Husbandman, and hence the fruit is manifold. 

He still lives, and is laboring for Christ. What things 
he may yet accomplish, we may not now predict. It is 
not for us to forecast the future, beyond this. He is in 
the hands of our loving and covenant Father, who called 
him into his own harvest field, in the bloom of his youth, 
and who knows how to utilize his matured energies for his 
own glory. It is perfectly safe therefore to assume that 
he will still employ him for his own wise ends, and may 
make him a still greater blessing to the world, in the 
proclaiming of his own name, as the " confidence of all 
the ends of the earth and of them also that are afar off 
upon the sea.*' 



CHAPTER VII. 

CHURCH WORK IN 1856 — PRAYER IN THE HATCH- 

HOUSE. 

Watch-night — A mind to work — Voluntary effort— Missionary at China — 
Another laborer for Christ — Success among shipmates — A brief ministry 
— Sweetmeats— Chief officer — Uncertainty of life— A young Englishman 
— Prayer retroactive — Bureau of information — Lord Howe's Island — 
A missionary whaleman— The Bethel work — Prayer in the " Hatch- 
house " — Early teachings— Ten years in the forecastle — Serious convic- 
tions—Faithful captain — Bible brought out —'* What must Ido'' — The 
firm resolve— Now or never— Desire to preach — Way opened — Enters 
college— An ambassador for Christ— Blessed of God — Twenty years in 
the ministry. 

In closing the records of the year 1855, it occurs 
re a brief sketch of the service at which we 
bade farewell to the old year, and welcomed the entering 
in ( f the new. It was our sailor's "watch-night" The 
ler will say, " Why, every night is a sailor's watch- 
!." I am aware of that, I have stood many of them. 
But a watch-night ashore is a different thing altogether 
I a watch-night at sea, especially such a watch-night 
held in our Mariners' church on the last night of 
the I had some doubts about detaining sea- 

men f»r five hours at a stretch at a religious meeting, but 
they had learned to "obey orders, if they broke owners." 
144 



CHURCH WORK IN 1856. I45 

I resolved therefore to give it a trial. The result proved 
that I had not miscalculated the staying power of the 
audience. Sailors are accustomed to "hold on." 

At half-past sevea a large number of seamen were 
present ; others continued to pour in until ten o'clock. 
From 7.31 till 9 P. M., we spent the time in praying and 
singing on the voluntary principle. A recess then took 
place for fifteen minutes for social converse. At 9.15, I 
preached a sermon from Phil. iii. 13, 14, urging the duty 
of pressing forward to new conquests for the Master. 
This occupied the time until eleven. Then came the 
season of blessedness. The best of the wine was reserved 
for the last of the feast. An invitation being given, men 
ross on every side, to testify of their love for, or their 
iued of Christ A red shirt here, a blue shirt there, a 
monkey-jacket, or a frock coat among them was seen lift- 
ing itself above the rest, while its wearer, beaten by the 
storms of every sea, bronzed by every clime, gave forth 
in simple, brief and earnest utterances, his testimony for 
Christ. Many regretted their short comings in the past, 
and promised better things for the future. 

At 12.15 eleven persons — five of them unconverted 
seamen, rose to ask for prayer, three of whom gave un- 
mistakable evidence afterward of having passed from 
death unto life. A few moments of silent prayer in the 
opening minutes of the New Year, closed one of the most 
thrillingly interesting meetings I had ever attended in my 
life. It was valued more however for the promise it gave 
for the future, than for its present results. It was worth 
a whole life time of labor and opposition. Its effect on 
my own soul was to make me determine to live more devot- 
edly, and, with the Divine blessing, to consecrate myself 



146 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

more absolutely to the blessed ministry of Christ among 
my brethren of the .sea. 

The new year had been sanctified by the spirit of God 
in the silence of the consecrating prayer, with which the 
watch-night closed. Baptized as it was by the Holy 
Spirit, and animated by hope and trust for the future, it 
e large promises of blessed results. Nor were the 
hopes of God's people either deferred or disappointed. 
The reviving influence continued. The walls of our holy 
city went steadily upward, for our people had "a mind to 
work." Spurred on by the increasing interest manifest- 
ed, they threw themselves into the work with redoubled 
zeal and energy. The congregations were enlarged, the 
number of meetings increased. The wave of spiritual 
life rolled on with increasing force, and each week added 
to its momentum. Sailors became more and more alive to 
their own eternal welfare, and presented themselves in 
increasing numbers to the pastor and missionary, in the 
attitude of inquirers after the way of life. There was no 
physical excitement, no shouting, no anxious seat, but a 
calm, earnest, profound and intense conviction of sin. 
Brave men, whose faces would not blanch before the 
enemy's broadside, who had experienced the horrors of a 
dark lee shore without quailing, were convulsed with grief 
and bathed in tears, under a consciousness of the hcinous- 
of their sins, which they felt were invoking the wrath 
of an angry God, and from which there could be no relief 
but in his pardoning love. Under these convictions they 
driven from every refuge of lies, from all hope of 
any remedy, but the one divinely provided ; and were led 
to seek God's way out of their difficulty. 

In this emergency the study of the pastor became the 



CHURCH WORK IN 1856. 1 47 

centre of interest to inquiring souls. With such a sense 
of peril, it is not wonderful that they should seek the 
means of escape, and that, finding them, they should em- 
brace and cling to them with all the tenacity of their 
awakened convictions and fears. Their anxiety was in- 
tensified by the consciousness of the fact that what was to 
be done, must be done at once. Time was rapidly pass- 
ing away; their opportunities were limited; their shore 
life was brief at best, and hence the intense solicitude to 
secure the favor of God before going again to sea. This 
desire in many of them was realized. Many more were 
compelled to leave while yet under conviction of their 
sins. These were urged to write and inform us of the 
result. In some instances the request was complied with : 
in others we were delighted with the return of some wan- 
derer, who, in his absence, had found his Saviour on the 
sea, and who, on reaching the shore, had made " a 
straight wake n for the church, to share with his breth- 
ren in Christ the exuberance of his new-found joy. 

Before the month of January closed, I received in my 
study two hundred and forty-two visits from seamen. 
The missionary and myself conversed privately on the 
subject of personal religion, with five hundred and thirty- 
one souls, and bowed in prayer with one hundred and 
ninety-three. Thirty-three of these, more than one for 
each day, gave cheering evidence that they had passed 
from death unto life. There were also seventy- three 
anxiously asking the way of peace, some of whom went 
to sea exclaiming, " I am determined, by God's help, to 
live a new life." Others left behind them testimony so un- 
exceptionable, that if we had heard of the deep waters 
closing over them forever, we should have confidently 



148 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

anticipated meeting them at the right hand of God. The 
impetus given to the good work was sustained and in- 
creased, so that at each monthly communion season, we 
were cheered and blessed, not only with rich experiences 
of ransomed souls, but with actual additions to our mem- 
bership, until, by December, one hundred and fifteen 
were added to the church of such we trust as were saved. 
Some idea of the intelligence, piety and missionary zeal 
of these converts may be deduced from their after lives. 
Under the date of April 9th, 1856, a young German 
sailor, who had but recently experienced the new birth, 
wrote me from Charlestown, Mass., where he was labor- 
ing as a missionary among seamen, at his own charges: 

" I am only a babe in Christ. It is but three months since I 
became a child of God, but I feel happy when I can speak a 
word for Christ, and tell what he has done for my soul. This 
makes me happier than if I was the richest man in the world. I 
am now laboring as a colporteur, and it is my business to catch 
men, as Peter did, and the Lord is with me. There is more 
glory, I believe, brought to God in the return of one straying 
p to the fold of Christ, than there is in the conquest of the 
whole world." 

In a later communication he expresses a strong desire 
to study for the ministry, in order that, being intellectually 
furnished for the work, he might obtain a position in some 
heathen seaport, where he could preach to the natives in 
their own tongue, and at the same time give the gospel to 
the seamen as they reached the shores. Still later he 
states that he labored for some months as a colporteur at 
his own expense, but, to use his own expressive lan- 
guage, " low water in the region of finance," compelled 
him to give up the good work and go to sea again ; still 



MISSIONARY IN CHINA. 149 

however, clinging to the hope, born of holy desire, that 
he might yet preach the everlasting gospel. Nor was 
this a vain hope, a visionary anticipation. Originating 
with the Holy Spirit, as all such hopes do, it was nour- 
ished and cultivated by the power that conceived it. He 
subsequently found the way open for the accomplishing of 
his purpose. A few years . later, having completed his 
studies, the following notice appeared in the " New York 
Examiner :" 

" History of a Missionary. — The Rev. Charles Kreyer, Mrs. 
Kreyer, and Miss Fields, recentiy appointed missionaries, the 
former to China, the latter to Siam, by the Missionary Union, 
sailed from this port in the ship 'N. B. Palmer/ for their 
future fields of labor. Mr. and Mrs. Kreyer will be stationed at 
Ningpo, and Miss Fields at Bangkok. Mr. Kreyer is a Ger- 
man by birth. At the age of fourteen, tempted by the love of 
adventure, he left home for this country. Here he shipped as 
a common sailor on a vessel bound to the East. He was con- 
verted on the voyage, and was baptized in China by one of the 
missionaries of the Southern Board. With a sailor's enthusiam 
he gave himself to Christian labor, at his own charge, first 
among seamen on the wharves in Boston, then in China among 
the natives. When a way opened for him to obtain an educa- 
tion, he embraced it, and now, after completing a course of 
study at Rochester, he has sailed for China, to recommence his 
work there." 

Thus another of these apparently hopeless wanderers 
of the sea becomes a subject of redeeming grace, and is 
sent forth to the heathen world, to proclaim the glad tid- 
ings of great joy to all people. These are however but 
the "avant coureurs,"of the advancing hosts, who are yet 
to come up from the ocean in their ships, and flood the 



150 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

dark places of the earth with gospel light. Who does not 
v to God to speed the day, when the teeming millions 
a shall go forth as living epistles of the truth of 
:. to be known and read of all men? 
Another young sailor of German extraction having 
found Christ among us, and being compelled to leave be- 
fore uniting with the church, wrote me under date of Au- 
gust 29th, 1856, from Liverpool: 

u My heart is glad and my soul rejoices in the goodness of 
God, whose converting grace in me, has led me to give myself 
up wholly to Christ, through whom I have received more than I 
asked for. As I look back I consider the time spent among the 
members of your church as the most useful and happy I ever 
spent in my life. I desire to engage most heartily in the work 
of winning souls. The converting grace of God has made a 
change in me. My mind, my heart, my life, my affec- 
tions arc all different from what they were by nature. In that 
I had no peace with God, no intercourse, no Intercessor. 
I found myself lost forever, and there was no human power that 
ive me. But the Lord would not let me perish. 
refore, in love to him, I now bear, everywhere, a living testi- 
mony to his mercy and faithfulness, and persuade men to think 
heir latter end. I cannot sufficiently thank God, who took 
such a poor worm as I, sunken so deep in sin and hard-hearted- 
and unbelief, out of the mire, and placed me where I could 
rv of the Gospel. I feel so wrapped up in the love 
tnd in the desire to save souls, that I would willingly lose 
all, U 1 keep ( 'hrist. I will patiently hear the reproaches and scoffs 
'.shipmates, trusting in God. I am determined to go for- 
for 1 know that my labor is not in vain in the Lord. I 
lingly to find bo many English captains and mates 
converted I hope they will not think it too much to speak a 
for Christ, who shed his blood for us." 



SUCCESS AMONG SHIPMATES. 151 

Two months after thus writing, he returned and joined 
the church, entering into covenant with Christ and his peo- 
ple to spend and be spent for his glory. This vow he 
faithfully kept, as his future correspondence shows. In 
April of the next year, he calls upon me to be a partaker 
in his joy, to share in the pleasure of his success among 
his shipmates. He says : 

" While in the brig D , I asked God if he would incline 

the hearts of my shipmates to hear and receive his word. I told 
them all my message, and made inquiries into the state of their 
souls. I informed them that I had made a covenant with God in 
the presence of his people, to work for the salvation of souls ; and 
if they would agree to be quiet and serious, I would lead in 
Divine worship. I gathered them about the family altar, read 
the scriptures, and prayed to the Lord to help them. I know it 
warmed their hearts, for they heartily thanked me, and urged 
me to repeat the service the following evening. I therefore con- 
tinued the services, though not without exciting the enmity of 
the captain, who tried to shake the foundations of my hope. 
But I have drank too deeply of the waters of salvation, and eaten of 
the bread of life too long to think even of giving up my sweet- 
meats now. I have taken up the cross of Christ, and am deter- 
mined to follow him to the end, though I count myself but one 
of the least of his followers. I am endeavoring to do my Master's 
work, stirring up the churches to pray earnestly that the spirit of 
God may be poured out abundantly upon the sea, in order 
that the nations may be brought to Christ, and his will be done on 
earth as it is in heaven. Pray for me. The Mariners' churches 
in Baltimore and in Boston, greeting you, pray for the Divine 
blessing upon you." 

A few months only, after this record of faithful effort 
and earnest longing, our young missionary sailor was called 
home to his reward in heaven, and to the eternal enjoy- 
ment of the presence of his risen Lord : 



15^ FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

A chief-officer haying confessed Christ, and united 
with the church, wrote as he was leaving our shores, in 
November, 1S56 : 

''We are now * a-wcigh ' for London. I have just time to 
drop 70a a line acknowledging the package of books you sent 
me. My fellow officers are very thankful for them. Remember 
us all in your prayers, dear pastor, and may the Father of Mercies 
3 you and your congregation. God grant that we may walk 
\v rthy of our vocation, with all lowliness and meekness, gentle- 
ness, kindness, and brotherly love, one toward another, with hon- 
esty and fidelity toward our employers, and with all humility and 
reverence toward our God. ' All aboard/ is the cry from the 
tug boat Adieu !" 

One month later, December 18th, he added: 

" We had a very severe passage, and lost one man overboard. 
He fell from the main yard during a hurricane. The sea ran so 
high there was no hope of saving him. It was heart-rending to 
see the poor fellow struggling with the billows, and yet be unable 
to render any assistance. How uncertain is life ! and how neces- 
sary that we should be prepared to meet our God and Saviour ! 
How merciful he has been to me and mine ! Should we not, 
daily and hourly, offer up our thanks and praise to Him? 
Blessed be His name ! He continues to watch over us and pro- 
tect us ! 

u I am very- much pleased with the ship and the captain, who 
pious man. I have felt happier this passage than ever before 
since I went to sea. I have not that fear in heavy weather that I 
i to have, for I now know that God is with me. In him is 
my trust. If he calls I know I must obey, and I pray that I 
may be prepared to meet him. I think of the many warnings 
I have had, and have neglected, and am thankful that God in 
mercy has spared me. " 



A YOUNG ENGLISHMAN. 1 53 

Again, a young Englishman, to whom I had spoken 
concerning his soul, at our first interview, fifteen months 
before, writes from Boston, September 18th, 1856 : 

"The writer of this is a stranger to you, I believe, by name, 
but the fact that I am a sailor, and one who has heard and pro- 
fited by your instructions, I doubt not, will be a sufficient 
apology for the liberty I take in addressing you, and asking that 
you will permit my letters to be left in your care." 

It may seem to the reader a matter of little importance 
that a sailor should write to me simply to request the fa- 
vor of forwarding his letters to him ; but it should be sta- 
ted that this very act opened up the way for me to pour 
into his soul the truth as it is in Jesus. It was the means 
of his conversion, brought him into membership with our 
church, and secured for us and for our enterprise the pray- 
ers of his distant friends. So that the blessing we gave 
came back to us again. His next letter informed us of the 
pleasure he felt in acquainting us with the fact of the pres- 
ence of the Holy Spirit in other ports. He thus writes : 

Cl I am sure you will rejoice when I tell you that yesterday nine 
sailors were received into membership with the Fort Hill Mari- 
ners' church, all of whom have found the pearl of great price 
since the opening of the present year. Seven others rose for 
prayer in the evening. As for myself, I am pained to acknowl- 
edge my weakness. My mind is sometimes overcast ; but then, 
it is not clouded long, and I am cheered by the assurance that 
the sun that enables me to shape my course anew, will never 
sink below the horizon, until I make the highlands of heaven. 
Though none may presume to define the extent to which our 
prayers avail on high, we both believe in the efficacy of the fer- 
vent, energetic prayer of the righteous, which availeth much. 

7* 



154 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

May I beg yours in my behalf? With love to your lady and 

children. Please remember me as one of your spiritual family. 

N. D. 0." 

My interest in, and correspondence with this young 

man, and with many hundreds of others, was continued 

through a series of years, enabling me, through my 

ids, to keep the run of them in different parts of the 

rid, and to act as a medium of communication between 
them and their relatives in other lands. As an illus- 
tration of this, I insert an extract from a letter of inquiry 
addressed to me by one of his near kinsmen in England : 

u Rev, and Dear Sir — Notwithstanding the very sad turmoil in 

which your nation has been so long engaged, I trust that your 

efiil profession will have served to keep you individually out 

of it, and that you still continue the loved pastor of the Mariners' 

church, as mentioned to me by Nigel D'Oyley, who found shel- 

• rt under your pastoral care, as he reported to me, 

three or four years ago. His kindred in this country have lost 

and all intelligence of him for the last thirty months. 

in the fear that some misfortune has overtaken him, that I take 

the liberty of writing, to ask you whether you know, or have 

1 anything of him during that period. It will be consider- 

e 1 a great favor of you, sir, to afford us any information in your 

r respecting our lost kinsman." 

I was in possession of such knowledge of the absent, as 
to relieve their fears and to convey to them the desired 
information. This is but one of the very many such 
inquiries that came to me, and that serve to illustrate the 
importance of such a centre and bureau of communica- 
tion as my study afforded. From it there radiated 
in every direction, lines of intelligence and sympathy, 
which extended to the extreme limits of the globe. Not 



LORD HOWE'S ISLAND. 155 

only were the seaports of the continent reached in this 
way, but in some instances the most distant and out-of- 
the-way islands of the sea. 

As an illustration of this, I quote again from a young 
man who was converted this year, in May, and who 
carried Christ with him in the ship. After reaching the 
antipodes, he wrote me, in January, 1857, from Lord 
Howe's Island, lat. 16" 50' south, long. 154 21' west, 
saying : 

1 ' Our captain left me ashore here, sick. There are but few 
people on the Island, and as far as I can learn, I am the only 
professing Christian among them, except a few Catholics. I 
should like to have some books and tracts for them. A great 
many ships from the United States touch here. I was a very bad 
man until May last. Then I learned that I had a God to serve, 
and that I had lived a great while too long in sin. God opened 
my heart, and told me that I had a soul to save, a hell to shun, 
and a heaven to gain. On our passage out, all our officers were 
professors of religion, and ten of the men before the mast. We 
had meeting every Sunday, in the cabin, in the morning and 
evening, and in the forecastle in the afternoon, the captain being 
the leader. I should be glad to hear from you. Please address 
as above." 

One other instance of this volunteer service on the 
part of converted sailors, and in behalf of their roving 
companions, occurs to me in this connection. A young 
man who had been engaged in whaling, and who had 
himself felt the power of saving grace, devoted his time 
voluntarily to efforts for the salvation of his fellow whale- 
men in New Bedford. On October 2nd, 185 7, he wrote 
me: 

"lam endeavoring to do the work which the good Lord has 
given me to dp here, among the outward bound. I have also 



156 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

been teaching in the Sabbath-school during the last three 
months. The superintendent is giving her whole time to the 
spiritual interests o( seamen. She distributes books and tracts, 
Bibles and religious papers among them, and puts up parcels of 
books to send to sea. I have been assisting her ever since I 
came here, and will continue to do so until I go to sea, which I 
hope to do the beginning of next month. I have shipped in a 
barque belonging to Fair Haven, bound to the Okhotsk and 
Arctic Seas. I have shipped for forty months, but hope to be 
homeward-bound in twenty. Till we sail, I shall continue in 
this good work. During the time spent here, I have distributed 
two hundred English Testaments, forty-seven in Spanish, and 
thirteen in Portuguese, besides packages of tracts, papers, pam- 
phlets, and books. I am running low, however, and I hope you 
may be able to help me ; a large supply is needed, and if I can- 
not get a donation, I will buy them myself, for I feel that this 
is a work that must be done. I have bought all the Testaments 
that were in the Bible rooms here, and must look for a supply 
from you or some one else, to meet the demand." 

It will be readily perceived that a young man, with the 
spirit of missions so largely developed and so persistently 
urging him on, must have been a valuable acquisition to 
the crew of the barque in which he was to labor for the 
next forty months, perhaps. He will hear, doubtless, 
when life's voyage is ended, from the Captain of his sal- 
vation : u Well done, good and faithful servant, enter 
thou into the joy of thy Lord." 

Another, which came somewhat later, from a Swedish 
sailor, in Illinois, tells the same story of a blessed change, 
and shows also the missionary spirit of those who became 
allied to God and his cause through our Bethel work. 

* Ri • J. Jones : 

14 Dear Brother — Your kind favor was received by me last 
spring. Accept from mc the sincere thanks of a heart which 



THE BETHEL WORK. 1 57 

owes all its hopes of a glorious immortality to the Bethel 
cause. May the Lord God Almighty reward and bless you in 
all your labors and trials, physical and spiritual, and make you 
the instrument in his hands of leading many sons and daughters 
to glory. I have come to love you ; for when I was alone, a 
poor orphan boy, oppressed beyond all conception with the bur- 
den of my sins, your missionary led my feeble steps to Jesus 
Christ. O, what righteousness, what sanctiflcation, what joy in 
the Holy Ghost, I found in him ! Blessed be the name of Je- 
sus ! It would be good to spend a life in his service, even if 
there was no hereafter. It would be a blessed, thrice blessed 
thing to die for his cause ! 

1 ' Go on, dear brother, in your labor of love. I will labor 
here on the prairies of Illinois until my Master calls me else- 
where. You toil on, with the sons of the sea, and I with the 
rugged farmers of the West It is a precious thing to labor for 
Christ, to win souls. It is exceedingly precious ! May the 
Lord God be with you and bless you, keep you and those he 
has given you, till he makes up his jewels, and we all meet in 
the fellowship of Christ Jesus, where we shall part no more. 

"G. A. S." 

PRAYER IN THE HATCH-HOUSE. 

In the spring of 1856, 1 became acquainted with and in- 
terested in a young Scotch sailor, about twenty-four years 
of age, who was before the mast in a steamship plying to 
Liverpool. I met him at the church service, invited him 
to my house, and found him an humble, earnest Christian, 
just in the flush of his early love. He had been convert- 
ed nearly two years before, and appeared quite anxious 
to be about his Master's business. His piety, zeal and 
genial demeanor made me desirous of knowing some- 
thing of his early history. Ever since my own conversion 
a sailor who loved my Saviour had been an object of 



1 58 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

deep interest to me. My soul was drawn out to this 
man. I exhorted him to Christian faithfulness, 
I induced him to enter into correspondence with me, 
in his absence from port; hoping by this means to be 
of service to him, and at the same time, gather material 
with which to illustrate to others, the wonderful grace of 
!. as displayed in the rescue of perishing souls. I was 
anxious too, in all such cases, to trace the various steps 
by which the sinner had been brought back to his alle- 
giance to Christ, to learn the way in which the covenant 
faithfulness of God had been displayed in his salvation, 
and the nature of the instrumentalities which had been 
blest to that end. I found here, as in so many other in- 
stances, that the divine influence was traceable to early 
religious instruction at home, and in the Sabbath-school, 
combined with the pious example of loved ones in the 
family circle, and confirmed by a long train of circum- 
stances, in which the hand of God had been leading him, 
all unknown to himself. He was the " son of parents 
passed into the skies." His history, in brief, as I received 
it from his own lips, and which he subsequently wrote 
out, at my request, was as follows : 

"I was born in Glasgow, Scotland, in 1832. My parents 
died when I was about five years old ; after which I was brought 
up by my grandparents, who were members of the Presbyterian 
Church. Every night the family was gathered for divine worship 
— I never knew it to be neglected. Under their roof, my moral 
strictly guarded. I was early sent to the Sabbath- 
ol, and there obtained such conceptions of God and his at- 
tributes, that 1 found it impossible in after years to be an infidel, 
!i I tried to make myself believe th it there was no God. 

"As I ] * foreign countries, there sprung up within 

me an intense desire to visit them. My grandparents and friends 



SERIOUS CONVICTIONS. I 59 

strove in vain to divert my mind from that object. After several 
attempts to obtain a ship, I at length succeeded. In the sum- 
mer of 1 84 6, when about fourteen years of age, I walked from 
my home to Glasgow, nine miles, and was bound as an appren- 
tice to the brig 'Amanda,' bound to Marseilles, and sailed in a 
few days. I continued to follow the sea for ten years, visiting 
different parts of the world, and leading, for the most part, a life 
of unrestrained wickedness. I need not go into detail, as every 
one who follows the sea knows what kind of a life men lead, who 
are exposed to so many dangers, and deprived of all religious ad- 
vantages. Many a time I reflected seriously upon my manner of 
life, and thought of what my fate must be if I were suddenly taken 
away by death. Often I made up my mind to do better. At such 
times, while at sea, I refrained from swearing as much as I could. 
I read my Bible, and made fair promises of amendment. But 
when I came on shore, alas ! alas ! My good resolutions went 
to the winds. Instead of going to the house of God, I found 
myself in the house of shame. The trouble was, I leaned too 
much upon my own strength ; I desired to be a Christian, but 
was not willing to submit myself to God's way. The result was, 
all my efforts at self-reformation were unavailing, until I was 
brought to apply to the throne of grace for help in my time of 
need. 

"Thus matters run along for about eight years. During a voy- 
age from New Orleans to Liverpool, I was the subject of serious 
convictions again. I then determined to pursue a sinful course 
no longer. I would become a better man, and shun a drunk- 
ard's grave. On reaching Liverpool I walked straight, in my 
own estimation, for five days, but never thought of entering a 
place of worship. At the expiration of that time I was induced 
by my shipmates to visit a house where they spent a great part of 
their time. Liquor and cards were introduced, and I was re- 
quested to join them in their revels. The temptation was too 
powerful for poor human strength to resist. I yielded ! my res- 
olutions were all upset. I became worse than ever before. In 



l60 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

fact I came to look upon myself as a ruined man, beyond the 
bility of recovery. Soon after this I joined a ship 

rid to New York. On the first Sabbath out, Captain Day, of 
Salem, Mass., brought some tracts to the forecastle, and laid them 
down upon my chest while I was eating my breakfast; saying, as 
he did 90, ' Read these ; they will do you no harm/ I picked up 
one of them, as did also some others, and began to read. The 

i if the crew ridiculed us. The effect on my mind was very 
different from theirs. I felt that God was giving me another call. 
I had neglected his house and commandments too long ; and 
now determined to change my course. 

1 * I searched for my Bible, which had been given to me by the 
Rev. Mr. French, of Portland, Maine, two years before. It had 
been carefully stowed away in the bottom of my chest 1 now 
began to read it, and wanted to pray for a blessing on it ; but was 
ashamed to be seen kneeling in the presence of others. All that 
day I was miserable. When night came, I slipped unnoticed 
into the hatch-house — where we kept the studding-sail gear — and 
tried to pray ; but the heavens seemed as brass over my head, and 
my feeble utterances appeared to be unheeded. In fact I fancied 
that my words of entreaty fell down like pieces of lead in the 
rope upon which I was kneeling. I imagined that a voice said 
to me, ' See how wicked you have been ! You are a lost soul/ 
I felt that it was all too true, and therefore concluded that there 

HO forgiveness for so wicked a sinner as I was. Just then I 
thought of Saul of Tarsus. He had been a great sinner, yet he 
found i >an Ion through the atonement of our Lord Jesus Christ 
there might also be mercy for me; and I cried out: 
1 What must I do to be saved ? ' During the rest of the passage 
t i NewYork I kept trying to mend my ways, and praying to God 
help. I had in my possession a book given to me by a Catho- 
lic shipmate, who had no need, he said, for a Protestant book. 
It was the autobiography of a Wesleyan minister, and did me good 
servi< 

" Feeling ashamed to take my Bible on deck, I used this as a 



NOW OR NEVER. l6l 

substitute ; an inferior one, it is true, but it suggested religious 
thought, and gave food to my meditation. Yet my Bible was 
my chief delight. On reaching New York, I determined to 
break away from all evil influences and companions, and attend 
the house of God. There can be no doubt that my frequent 
failures in regard to holy living grew out of a notion that I 
could do well enough without going to church. One could 
read his Bible and pray, and refrain from swearing without at- 
tending the house of God. I now saw that I was wrong, and 
resolved to do so no more. Bright and early one Sabbach 
morning I set out from my boarding-house, with the pur- 
pose of attending divine sendee. I was too early — and resolved 
on a short walk. One of the men went with me, and in passing 
a grog-shop, said to me, ' Come, John, let us have some liquor.' 
I had not the moral courage to decline ; but on reaching the 
bar called for a glass of milk, so that I might not offend him by 
refusing to drink with him. After this I left the house and suc- 
ceeded in reaching a church door just as the service was about to 
commence. Instead of going in, however, I went past. f Is it 
possible, ' I asked myself, * after all my resolutions and prayers, 
that I am to go to sea again without making the attempt to serve 
God in his sanctuary V While this questioning was going on 
within, it was as if a voice said in my ear, ' Now or never f I 
responded, ' It shall be Now!' 

" I resolved to take a walk round the block until the singing 
commenced, that I might pass in unnoticed. When I reached 
the door again I trembled like a leaf. I did not know whether a 
sailor would be welcome ; but noticing a little negro boy in the 
second pew from the door, I thought, they will at least allow me 
to go in there. I accordingly seated myself in that pew. At 
the close of the service I felt that God had blest me, and as I left 
the house said to myself in a suppressed voice, ' Praise God ! 
Praise God !' I attended church in the evening, and on the 
following Tuesday left for Charleston, S. C. 

11 Before leaving I purchased a book called ' Seven Lecture* 
u 



FIFTY VEARS AMONG SAILORS 

to Young Men,' from the perusal of which I derived much plea- 

and profit While on the passage I was deeply impressed 

with the idea that I should one day preach the gospel. Yet I 

thought, the thin;; is impossible. I am before the mast; without 

[IS, without education, without natural ability for that high 

The idea must be abandoned at once and forever. 

•• There was no getting rid of the thought, however, do what 

I aid. I therefore began to pray over it, asking God, if it 

was his will that I should preach, to open the way ; but if not, to 

tike away the desire for so high and honorable an office. While 

reading my Bible, a day or two after this, I read these words : 

' This is a faithful saying, if a man desire the office of a bishop, 

he desireth a good work/ The passage appeared so applicable 

I » my case that I at once concluded that the Lord had directed 

my attention to that very portion for my guidance." 

On returning to New York, my young friend united 
with the Methodist Church, rejoicing that he was counted 
worthy to be numbered with Christ's flock. On his 
next voyage he visited Charleston again, and while there 
attended church, at which the minister who preached 
took for his text the story of the conversion of Saul, and 
made it the basis of a discourse in answer to two ques- 
tions : ist, What is conversion? 2d, What is a call to the 
ministry ? 

In relating this event to me afterwards, he said : 

" If I had told him beforehand of the thoughts which had been 
Dg through my mind, he could not more fully have satisfied 
my doubts. In the course of his sermon, he said, 'I am con- 
fident tint there is in this congregation, at this time, a young 
mail I to the ministrv. Be not afraid, the Lord will 

tiv. ' Thus fir I had listened with great attention ; 
an 1 when h • not afraid ' T thought it too rood news to 

be true. I drew a long breath as he closed, and said to myself 



ENTERS COLLEGE. 1 63 

1 I can never do that. If ever I am able to stand up and preach 
in the pulpit it will be a miracle/ " 

Yet, strange as it may seem, that young sailor, before 
ten years passed away, did stand in that very pulpit and 
preach the everlasting gospel, and told the people what 
great things God had done for his soul in that church 
while yet a sailor. How it came about I will now state. 
Nearly two years passed away after his conversion before 
the desire of his soul was attained. In March, 1856, he 
sailed for Liverpool in the steamship 'Canadian/ What 
followed, how the Lord led him by a way which he knew 
not, and which was not of his own seeking, how he 
removed all obstacles out of his way, and provided for 
his entering upon a course of study for the ministry, is 
told in the following letter, which, to my surprise, I 
received from Victoria College, Coburg, Canada, under 
date of August 30th, 1856: 

' ■ My Dear Brother in Christ — Having promised to write to you 
ani tell you how and where lam, I now fulfil my promise, al- 
though not quite so soon as I intended. When I reached Liv- 
erpool, in the ' Canadian/ I left her, and went home to Glas- 
gow, to see my friends, and to procure, if possible, a berth in an 
American vessel, that I could leave on this side of the Atlantic. 
Failing in this, I went back to Liverpool and joined my old ship, 
as she was bound to Montreal. I found, however, that I must 
sign articles to return to Liverpool. That I did not want, be- 
cause I desired to remain in America. My shipmates urged me 
to sign the articles, get my half month's pay, and then run, 
when I got over on this side. But that would not satisfy my 
conscience now. I therefore proposed to the captain to work 
my passage to Montreal He consented, after I explained to 
him mv reasons for the request. 

" We sailed on the 7th of May, bound to Quebec and Montreal, 



164 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

witb m As God would have it, there was among the 

a Mr. Edmonson, of Montreal, part owner of 
one of the lines of steamers plying between that city and Kn- 
it appears, now, that during the passage, the captain had 
D paying particular attention to my conduct, and had spoken 
me to Mr. E. This I learned afterwards. Meanwhile I had 
made up my mind to sail on the lakes during summer, and earn 
money to pay my schooling in the winter. As soon as we arrived 
I lashed up my chest, bade my shipmates good-bye, and repair- 
ed to the steamer bound for Toronto. But, finding that I had 
^n hour to spare before she sailed, I ran back to the ship, to 
thank the captain for my passage. While doing so, he inter- 
rupted me by saying that he had been speaking to Mr. E. about 
me, and that he wished me to see him. At that moment the 
captain turned to Mr. E. and said, ' This is the young man of 
whom I spoke as giving me such satisfaction/ Mr. E. asked 
me to what denomination I belonged, and some other questions ; 
and then invited me to accompany him to visit some gentlemen 
in the city. But as some were absent whom he desired to in- 
troduce me to, he suggested that I had better go to Toronto, and 
he would write me there. At Toronto I engaged on board a 
1 for a month, after which I received a letter requesting me 
port to a minister in that city for instructions. He took 
at of the Conference, who stated that the Mon- 
treal Circuit had agreed to assume the expense of my studies for 

Here then our dear brother was fairly afloat, launched 
forth on a prosperous tide, and heading for the long- 
ired and wished-for goal. Eight years rolled away 
from the date of his Canadian letter, before I heard 
in from my young Scotch friend. In the winter of 
1 I received an account of the completion of his stud- 
ies, and his entrance on the work of the ministry. In 
referring to the way in which God had led him, he says : 



BLESSED OF GOD. I65 

""Without asking a single person for assistance, or even hint- 
ing at such a thing, my way was opened up so that I went to the 
University of Canada West, and at the expiration of six years 
took my degree of B. A. Since that time I have been, and still 
am laboring in the work of the ministry, not among seamen, as 
my inclinations would lead me ; but I hope the day is ni: :/.: 
distant when a door in that direction will, if it be the will ofG 
be opened. If not, I am content to be placed where the voice 
of the church sees fit to call me. In the mean time I can never 
be unmindful of the sons of the Ocean. I frequently pray far ;he 
hastening of the time when the abundance of the sea shall be 
convened to God. 

" To moralize on the foregoing is no part of my purpose, as I 
think that a simple narration of facts has more weight than vol- 
umes of argument Should the story of God's dealing with me 
meet the public eye, I hope it will be the means of strengthen- 
ing believers in the faith, and of inducing some poor sailor to flee 
from the wrath to come. " 

Sixteen years rolled away after the receipt of the 
above, during which I heard nothing of my brother. In 
June, 18S0, having a desire to know of his whereabouts, 
I wrote a note to the Victoria University, Coburg, Ca., 
making inquiry for him. By return of mail I received a 
note, saying, 4 * Rev. John Salmon is now a Congregation- 
al minister, living at Embro, Oxford Co., Ontario, Ca." 
I wrote at once to the foregoing address, and almost im- 
mediately received a note in reply, dated June 19, 1SS0, 
saying : 

" I was surprised and delighted to receive your welcome letter. 
How kind is our heavenly Father to preserve us thus far, and to 
use us in any manner to do his will ! Since I took my degree 
of B. A., in 1862, I have been engaged in preaching the Gospel 
in different parts of Canada, with occasional visits to the United 



lC6 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

State& The first few years of my ministry I was not much used 
in Clod's work. The reason was, that I had more desire to honor 
John Salmon than I had to honor the Master. But I got an 
humbling about twelve years ago, and since that time, not a year 
has passed, without evidence of the Lord's approval of my work. 
I am frequently asked by neighboring pastors and evangelists to 
:i evangelistic work. I usually, if possible, enter every 
open door. The Lord has given me a good constitution, so that 
I have held as many as four meetings a day, during last winter ; 
and I tell you it is blessed to seethe Lord's work — apart from 
all excitement, backed by the spirit of God — producing conviction 
of sin, and leading the sinner to a knowledge of Christ, as his 
own personal Saviaur. 

"I had the privilege — for such I esteem it — of preaching 

while in Montreal recently to a few sailors. How my heart was 

moved toward them ! I recalled the years now passed, when in 

\ime port, after my conversion, 1 overcame the habit of 

smoking. This occurred while I was before the mast, in a sailing 

ship. On going home, after preaching to those seamen, I was 

happier than I can describe. I feel as if I would like to be preach- 

unong them all the time. I have been in my present charge 

:s. Two weeks ago I resigned, being decided in my 

iction that the Lord has some other field of labor for me. 

Since then I have been unanimously requested by the seven 

His, and the people, to withdraw my resignation. Should 

.now of any open door among seamen, I should be glad to 

•fit, and enter it, if it proved to be the will of God. I am 

ed, however, until then, to work away in my present field, 

Striving to win souls for Christ. May the adorable Lord whom 

rve aid us to be very much devoted to himself, that we may 

v him day by day — is the prayer of your brother in him, 

J. S." 

With such blessed results from a single tract, who will 
pise the day of small things? 



BLESSED OF GOD. 1 67 

The last trace of this dear brother is dated Nov. 6th, 
18S3. He wrote from Toronto, Canada: 

1 ■ I am on my way to Jamaica, W. I. , on an evangelistic tour of 
a few months. I will try to call on you, if possible, in memory 
of old times, when I was a sailor boy. 

1 ' Yours in Christ, John Salmon. " 



CHAPTER VIII. 

THE WAY TO THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN. 

Important question — Dirt and rags — Sense of sin — Choice of profession — 
A Godless youth — Cast away — Struggling with the waves — Chief officer 
— Before the mast — Religious captain — Cast away again — In command 
— Again before the mast — Pumping day and night — Miraculous escape 
— Debauchery and shame — In command again — Hell upon earth — On 
X-ong Beach — Boat capsized — Hundreds of sharks — Once more on the 
quarter-deck — A changed man — Married — Sickness and poverty — Stead- 
fast, unmurmuring -Death among strangers, in 1865 — The heart opened 
— The dying message — Happy death — Sailors grateful — "Sick and ye 
visited me M — Songs in the night — A ministering angel — Seamen 
accessible — " Sailors' companion " — One of Christ's babes — Young 
Spaniard. 

At the close of the evening service in the church on 
Sabbath, September 28th, 1856, a sailor, very much 
under the influence of liquor, pushed his way toward the 
pulpit, as the audience was going out, and asked me in a 
loud tone if I could tell him u the way to the kingdom 
of heaven ?" I answered him tenderly, and pointed 
him to " the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin 
of the world." After a few words of counsel, I invited 
him to call and see me in my office on the next day, 



I6S FIFTY TEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

proffering my services to help him on the way. to the 
best of my ability. He seemed grateful, and promised 
he would come. The questioner was miserably clad, and 
dirt)', as if he had just crawled out of the gutter ; his hair 
long and matted, his beard unshorn, his face bloated, his 
eyes bleared and bloodshot. In short, he looked like 
one who was at the latter end of a prolonged debauch. 
But under all the dirt and rags, there was a man — a sailor 
man, for whom my Saviour died. This was enough to 
secure my interest in him. Had I not been there 
myself? Had not my blessed Lord taken me from the 
horrible pit and miry clay ? Here then was my legiti- 
mate work — to point him? no, not to point him only, 
but to lead him into the kingdom of heaven. 

The next day he came to see me. He had great dif- 
ficulty to k~ep his emotion in check. He wept, and said 
he feared he was so great a sinner that Christ would 
have nothing to do with him, and that it was too 
late. I endeavored to comfort him, bowed in prayer 
with him, and for him, gave him a copy of the " Anx- 
ious Inquirer," and some tracts, and requested him to 
call daily for instruction. The next day he came again. 
I took him to my home, and introduced him to my wife 
and children. Here I learned more of his history. It 
Was indeed a wonderful story. Yet nothing could be 
more wonderful than the subsequent history of his moral 
recovery, his union with the church, after two years' 
trial, in October, 1858, his godly life, and his final entrance 
into the kingdom of heaven above, which is opened 
only to all believers. 

As to his past life. He was born in Cork, Ireland, in 
June, 1825. He was consequently in his thirty-second 



CHOICE OF PROFESSION. 169 

year when he first came to me, though he looked forty 
at least ; he had so abused himself. While yet a child 
his parents emigrated to Buenos Ayres, South America. 
There his mother died, and her loss to him must have been 
very great. At ten years of age, he was sent to England 
and placed in an academy at Liverpool. His choice of 
a profession being left to himself, he preferred the life of 
a sailor, and went to sea with his brother-in-law, Captain 

B , who, though not a Christian man, was anxious to 

have his young relative familiar with Holy Writ, and 
therefore required him to read two or three chapters in 
the Bible every Sabbath. 

After making two voyages around the world with 

Capt. B , he returned to Liverpool and joined an 

Indiaman, commanded by a gentleman, who was a mem- 
ber of the family, and who treated him well. In Bombay 
his new captain required him to attend divine service on 
shore, every Sabbath. He feared, however, that there 
was more of the outward observance, than of the inward 
grace, and that consequently he was but little benefited 
by his church-going. 

The voyage over, he was in Liverpool again, and 
joined a Valparaiso trader, as second officer. In her he 
made several voyages to the West Coast, during all 
of which time the thought of God never once disturbed 
his mind. To use his own words, written to me some 
months afterwards, he says : 

11 Infidel-like, I cared all for the body and nothing for tho 

soul. But lately it has pleased God to touch my most obdurate 

heart. And now I hope that by his divine grace and wisdom, I 

may be enabled to bring others, especially my fellow-seamen, to 

feel as I at this moment do. May the Lord look down upon us 
8 



i;o FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

with pity and forgive us, poor wandering sinners that we arc, for 

without his aid we can never be saved." 

Continuing his narrative, he says: 

" I made three voyages as second mate, and returned again to 
I was then appointed chief-officer of a vessel in the 
same employ, and bound again round the Horn. But it pleas- 
ed the Father of all wisdom and glory to frustrate our purposes. 
We struck on Black Water Bank, off the coast of Ireland, in a 
gale of wind, and out of seventeen persons on board, only on3 
man besides myself was saved. Neither of us could swim a 
Stroke. But it pleased God to spare the lives of two perishing 
sinners. It seemed nothing short of a miracle. With the help 
of God we were both saved by holding on to an oar, for some 
wise purpose, doubtless ! We were washed ashore on St. Pat- 
rick's day, in the presence of about two thousand spectators. 
But with such a sea running they were unable to launch a boat 
for our rescue. While struggling with the mountain waves, I 
thought of my loving, but too justly offended God, and prom- 

that if he would spare me, I would live a better life. I 
meant a religious life, for no life can be better, except a religious 
one. as I can now testify. You would naturally think, Mr. 
Jones, that, after our heavenly Father had spared the life of a 
miserable sinner like me, I would keep the promise I had 
made But, alas ! no — after being ashore but two weeks, I 

►t all about God. I thought, by going to a place of wor- 
ship illy, and giving charity to a poor beggar, when I 

1 afford it, that I was fulfilling all that was required of me 

Christian. Did my heart feel any love toward God ? No : 
It was all outward show. But now, thanks be to God, I feel 
that within the last five months I am a better man. It is not 
of my doing, however, but God's — the result of the continued 
intene- -ion of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, saying, 
'Father, spare him a little longer!' and he has spared me. I 
hope it is, that I in iv be an humble instrument in his hands, of 
doing some good to my brother sailors. 



CHIEF-OFFICER. 171 

"After my shipwreck on the coast of Ireland, I joined my 
brother-in-law's vessel as chief-officer, but did not remain with 
him long, on account of some words that we had, arising from 
my neglect of duty, through the use of wine. After leaving 
him, I shipped in a British man-of-war, before the mast, and re- 
mained in her two years and a half. Never a thought of God in 
all that time occupied my mind. I spreed away, as long as my 
money held out after being paid off, and then shipped before 
the mast in one of Green's ships in London. We were bound 
to the East Indies. Our captain was a truly religious man. 
He gave each of us a Bible. We were required to attend 
Divine service every Sabbath, either in the cabin or on the 
quarter-deck. The captain came into the forecastle, and prayed 
and read with us, out of the Holy Book of God. He treated 
me with the utmost kindness, as I showed some signs of refor- 
mation. But alas ! The seed was sown in barren ground, and 
brought forth no fruit 

"In Calcutta I left good Captain N , and joined the barque 

D , of Liverpool, as second-officer. One would be led to 

suppose, that after having suffered so much, and having re- 
ceived so much good advice from Capt. N , I would have 

turned my thoughts toward God, and the redemption of my 
soul, but I did not The devil had too fast a hold of me, and 
was dragging me down, body and soul, to a river of living fire. 
On my arrival in Liverpool, I joined the barque E. A., in the 
Pernambuco trade, as chief-officer. In this vessel I remained 
until she was cast away on Horchwell shoals, off the Cape de 
Verde Islands, and there again the intercession of the Saviour 
secured the prolongation of my life. Yet I took all the merit 
of my safety to myself. Did not I get out the boats, and land 
the men safe on shore ? Ah ! poor weak mortals, how long 
will we allow ourselves to remain blind to the glory of God, 
and deaf to his inviting voice, while he cries, ' Come unto me 
all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest I* 

" On my return to England, after my second shipwreck, I 



i;j 111 TV YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

1 letter from the West Coast of South America, calling 
>mmandofa London ship. I took passage in a 

. from Liverpool and arrived in Callao, after a passage of 
•ht days, thank God I In Callao, I met a kind and 
sister and her husband, after an absence of five years, 
d by my own misconduct alone. The vessel I commanded 
chartered for a port in the United States, but did not reach 
her destination. It pleased the Almighty to give me another 
trial, so as to touch my heart of stone. When about one hun- 
dred miles to the southward of Valdivia, our vessel sprung a 
leak, in a gale of wind, making eight inches of water an hour, 
and every day increasing, without our being able to stop it, as it 
under water. 
" We continued pumping for twenty-one days, the leak still 
gaining on us, and no friendly port at hand to invite us in. 
We were exhausted both in body and mind. One of the crew 
died, four were laid up sick, the rest were at the pumps day and 
night, all that time. You would naturally ask me, did you not 
think of your too long neglected God? Yes, I did think of Him, 
and went down on my knees and prayed to our heavenly Father 
the deliverance of myself and shipmates from a watery grave. 
ii <>ur kind and forgiving Saviour stretched forth his hands 
hed us from death. A vessel hove in sight, and we 
taken ofT ; our own ship disappearing beneath the yawning 
..v three hours after our miraculous escape from destruc- 
All this took place oil" Cape Horn, in the dead of winter, 
in the midst of continued gales of wind and snow, with only four 
hours of daylight This new proof of the Divine mercy should 
have been enough to turn any man's heart. But such was not 
the case with me, for the vessel that picked us up landed us in 
Val] more ashore, with plenty of money in 

my p .1 rgot all my late troubles and promises to God. 

was lost sight of. I gave way to a 

life<< shame — my God, my soul — all — all for- 

ten I Having frieu Is on the coast, I soon obtained command 



DEBAUCHERY AND SHAME. 1 73 

of a ship of six hundred tons, under Permian colors, owned in 
Liverpool. That vessel I commanded for some time, until she 
was sold on the coast. I then got command of another and 
brought her to Liverpool. 

" Having been absent from England about five years, I 
thought this a good time to enjoy myself in the pleasures of life. 
So' I squared up with my employers and started for London, 
where I remained, spending my money and my time, and 
destroying my health, which was of more value than all the 
money. I did not think of God, but gave way to all manner of 
sin. It was a hell upon earth. I risked the loss not only of my 
reputation, but of my soul. But I hope now, and trust in God, 
that my soul is in his all-powerful keeping ; although I don't 
know why I, so hardened a sinner as I have been, should expect 
any more of God's mercy, having rejected it so often. 

"I remained in London until I had spent all my money, 
except barely enough to carry me to Glasgow, where I arrived an 
entire stranger, with one suit of clothes to my back, and half a 
crown in my pocket. Here I shipped again before the mast in 
an American vessel, bound to New York, where it pleased the 
Lord to throw me in your way, when half drunk. Although I 
received such good instruction, good books and wise counsel 
from you and Mrs. Jones, the devil still held me fast, and would 
not let me part company with him, saying to me : ' You are a 
fool ! Will you give up all the pleasures and enjoyments in life 
and hearken to that ranter — that madman? No such thinor ! 
You know better. Come, drink, drink deep of this world's joys/ 
This world's joys, indeed ! joys of everlasting torment ! 

" After leaving you, with such good intentions, I went to 
Cadiz, and on our return, in the month of February, 1857, we 
were cast away on Long Beach, about eighty miles from New 
York. Here again the Lord dehvered me, the fourth time, from 
a water} 7 grave. But I did not thank him for his loving kindness 
to me, a sinner above all sinners, for I got drunk almost as soon 
as I got ashore. If God was not a just and merciful being, I 



174 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

must have perished in the multitude of my sins, and sunk into 
bell without redemption. I came to New York, and sailed for 
the West Indies, without going near a place of worship, or call- 
ing to see you and Mis. Jones, the sailors' friends. 

"While laying in port at one of the islands, I landed the 
captain one day in our sailing-boat It was blowing fresh, and 
illy. I had to make a tack off to reach the vessel. When 
about a quarter of a mile outside all the shipping, a sudden 
squall struck the boat and capsized her. Having about half a 
ton of ballast in her, she went down from under me, leaving me 
on the surface of the water, holding on by two oars, in the vicin- 
ity of hundreds of sharks. Here again our Lord Jesus Christ in- 
Jed for my deliverance, and our all-forgiving God spared me 
a little longer. I hope now, by the aid of the Holy Spirit, to 
live an upright and good life, until it shall please him to take 
me to himself. 

"In the West Indies, our second-officer left us, and I was 
promoted to the quarter-deck once more. We were bound to 
Falmouth, for orders. On the passage, while pacing the deck 
at night and communing with my own thoughts, my life came up 
re me for review. I asked myself those questions : ' What 
good have I done for myself or for any one else in this world dur- 
the thirty odd years it has pleased the all-bountiful God to 
live in it ? ' Wicked sinner that I am ! I answ r ered 
T in a single word — ' Nothing ! I have done absolutely no- 
il f»r my own soul. I have cast the grace of God from 
me, and defied him. I feel that I have done wrong and am still 
n rong. ' 
44 Ju>t then I felt something like the prick of a thorn within my 
la warning voice came sweeping over the deep to me, 
nt ! ere it be too late ! ' and I did repent, for from 
that hour I b me a changed man. But man cannot 

■ ith the evil one — he must implore the aid of God, 
and it will be given him, if he asks in faith, for without faith in 
Christ no man can be saved. 



SICKNESS AND POVERTY. 1 75 

•' Again, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ has said, l Ask and 
it shall be given unto you ; for whatsoever you shall ask in my 
name the Father will do it for you ! ' That promise is a living 
proof to me that whoever the sinner may be, and wherever he 
may be, there is God also. We only want faith, and with faith 
we have the support of God. I hope the Lord will keep me 
steadfast in the path I am now endeavoring to tread, and enable 
me to fight the good fight of faith, so that I may conquer sin. 
This is the earnest prayer of your brother in Christ, 

"W. Curran." 

Thus far the personal narrative of our brother sets 
God's mercy and long-suffering before us in a strong 
light ; and let it be remembered that the Divine germ so 
strangely implanted in his soul, grew into a devout Christ- 
ian vitality, which continued and increased through all 
the next eight years of his sailor life, during which his 
walk was consistent and his hope kept bright. 

During one of his voyages to England he made the 
acquaintance of a Christian lady, who became his wife. 
He brought her with him to Philadelphia, where they 
lived very happily together. Both of them were indus- 
trious and thrifty, happy in each other's affections, and 
happy together in the Lord. Trials they had in measure, 
afflictions were not wanting. Disease laid fierce hold 
upon him. Inflammatory rheumatism racked his limbs for 
years. Poverty claimed him for her own. But during 
all that long, dark night of sorrow, unfit from physical 
debility for work of any kind, when employment was to be 
obtained, and unable to procure the work when physi- 
cally adapted to its execution, often brought to the very 
verge of starvation, without means to purchase medicine 
to ease his pain, or pay for the services of a physician, and 



176 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

finally his wife laid by, sick from exposure in the winter 
>n, while applying from store to store for the privilege 
of working to keep the wolf from the door, and he him- 
self stricken down with paralysis — both of them became 
dependent on the benevolence of friends. Yet his faith 
in God never failed him ; his allegiance to Christ continued 
steadfast, and his unmurmuring spirit kept cheerfully 
on his way, seeing only God's good hand in every- 
thing, and acknowledging his wisdom in all the exi- 
gencies of his personal experience. His correspond- 
ence, which he kept up with his pastor and friend, 
through all those years, showed that the fires of love kin- 
dled in his new-born soul in that memorable night-watch 
at sea, in the summer of 1857, continued to burn with un- 
uimmed and inextinguishable fervor, until from the shores 
of the West Coast of South America — absent from her 
whom he loved dearer than life, and among a people of 
a strange tongue, he heard the welcome voice of his 
Saviour, in the spring of 1865, calling him to his inheri- 
tance on high. He had been suffering from epileptic fits, 
but had recovered, and on the day of his death was full 
of hope. He was anticipating the privilege of sending for 
his wife, as he had a promise from a merchant in Val- 
paraiso of the command of a ship as soon as he was able 
to take her. But the bud of promise was nipped by the 
frost of death, before it could expand. He received a 
>nd stroke of paralysis, and fell asleep in the arms of 
his covenant Lord, who had rescued him from his life of 
rcc' \ in sin, fitted him to serve in his royal house 

ve, and taught him the true way to the kingdom 
of heaven. 



THE HEART OPENED. 1 77 

" Life's duty done, as sinks the clay, 
Light from its load the spirit flies ! 
While heaven and earth combine to say, 
How blest the righteous when he dies I" 

THE HEART OPENED. 

On the first Sabbath of September, a young sailor, a 
Hollander by birth, was awakened to a sense of his own 
wrong-doing, and especially to the danger of his drink- 
ing habits. The effect of the truth on his mind was such 
as to convince him that the time had come for him 
to abstain from intoxicating drinks. On the Tuesday 
following, therefore, accompanied by a companion, he 
came to my study, and asked to be permitted to sign the 
temperance pledge. He expressed the belief that rum 
had led him into bad company, and he purposed now to 
abandon it forever. Having received his certificate of 
membership in the Marine Temperance Society, he 
resolved to take a step further on the road to safety, and 
came to the lecture in the evening. Here his convic- 
tions were deepened, and he determined to avail himself of 
all the means of grace, while he remained ashore. He 
became a regular attendant on all our Sabbath and week- 
day services, the truth daily gaining more power over 
his spirit. 

After some three weeks of constant attendance, he 
appeared before the council of the church to ask instruc- 
tion. Here it came out that he had imbibed infidel prin- 
ciples, and these he found to be in the way of his entire 
consecration to Christ. The counsel he received, his 
daily attention to the preached word, and the prayer- 
meetings, resulted in dissipating the clouds of darkness 
which had blinded his spiritual vision. I learned that he 



1 78 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

was born in Dorsburg, Holland, in 1827, and received a 
religious training ; but at the age of seventeen he went to 

.. and through the influence of corrupt men had fallen 
into intemperate habits and succeeded in persuading 
himself into unbelief. I gave him such assistance as I 
could, and put into his hand a copy of Gaussen's " Christ 
Knocking at the Door of Man's Heart/' in his own 
language. This little book was blessed of God to him. 
He hearkened to the Saviour's knock — the fortress of his 
soul capitulated. The gates were thrown wide open, his 
heart responded, and welcomed the heavenly stran- 
ger in. 

On the 7th of October, just one month from the day 
in which he first visited the church and listened to the 
truth, he came to my study rejoicing in Christ Jesus. 
His countenance was beaming with happiness, and he 
said : u Now I believe with all my heart, and can pray — 
not with my lips only, but with my whole heart." He 
bought a hymn book to take to sea with him, that he 
might make melody in his heart unto the Lord. On the 
13th he came to take his farewell of the church and 

tor. He was evidently feeling the power of the Holy 

it, and going forth in the strength of his crucified 

Lord. I supplied him with reading matter for the voyage, 

gave him an introduction to the Rev. Mr. Taylor, sailor's 

preacher, and to the Ladies Seamen's Friend Society, at 

Francisco, to which port he was bound, and also to 

the Rev. S. C. Damon, at Honolulu, as he expected to visit 

Sandwich Islands. He was unable to correspond in 

the English language, and this may account for the fact 

that i did not hear from him again. 



THE DYING MESSAGE. 1 79 

I have stated in another place that many of the men 
who came under the influence of the Mariners' church 
were moved by the truth they heard, and the kindness 
with which they were treated, to secretly resolve to serve 
the Lord ; and that many of this class went to sea before 
putting these purposes into practical effect. Of some of 
these we heard incidentally, through others who had 
met or sailed with them. Correspondence brought others 
to our knowledge, but from many we received no tidings. 
We had however the comforting assurance that the good 
seed, " faithfully cast upon the w r aters," would certainly 
be found, even though it were " after many days/' In 
one instance, at least, the intelligence of good accom- 
plished came back to us in a direct channel. 

We learned of the birth of a soul of a brother we 
never saw, and whose name we never knew. As the 
mother is sometimes only assured of the life of her 
child by hearing its dying wail, so we learned of the 
birth of our nameless brother by the message he 
sent us from his dying bed. It came to my house while 
I was temporarily absent, by two young men belonging 
to Nova Scotia, who stated that they had come at 
the request of a shipmate who died on the passage from 
the West Indies. They said he was not well when he 
shipped in the vessel, that he was suffering from some 
affection of the lungs, which seemed to be intensified by 
the action of the sea air, and the exertion incident to 
ship's duty ; so that he became rapidly worse, after they 
got outside, and was soon confined to his berth. It 
appeared also from this statement that he was a constant 
reader of the Bible, and prayed without ceasing. 

Before he died he called his shipmates around him, 



180 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

and told them that he knew very well that he was dying, 
but that he felt assured that Jesus Christ had washed all 
his sins away, and he was going to his heavenly home to 
live with Him forever. lie wished them, he said, if they 
lived to reach New York, to call on Rev. Mr. Jones, the 
pastor of the Mariners' church, in Madison street, and 
tell him that on the Sabbath evening before he sailed, 
while passing the church, he was attracted by the music, 
and stopped to listen to the singing. As he stood there, 
he was invited to enter and attend the service. He com- 
plied with the invitation, and listened attentively to the 
sermon. Here the sins of his past life came up in dread 
array before him. He saw himself in a condition of 
which he had not conceived before. He felt that he was 
a condemned, lost sinner. While his soul was writhing 
under the sense of guilt, degradation, and misery, the 
pastor pointed to the Lord Jesus Christ as the only way 
of escape. He felt anxious to avail himself of the rem- 
, and in that state of mind, left the church and went 
on board the vessel. Then and there he resolved that he 
uld forsake his evil ways, seek the pardon and forgive- 

of his sins, and try, with God's help, to live the 
remainder of his days in the service of Christ his 

tir. 
1 the pastor/' said he, " that his faithful sermon set 
, and brought me to cast my sins on Jesus. 
Tell him that with my dying breath I shall bless him, and 

that he may be long spared to preach and to 

i the bl< »-pcl." He further urged his ship- 

] to the words of the preacher for them- 

— and above all things to forsake their sins and seek 
the favor of God." 



SAILORS GRATEFUL. iSl 

While communicating the message, the young men 
seemed to be greatly moved, and were scarcely able to 
keep back their tears. My wife requested them to re- 
main till I returned ; but as they were just about to sail 
for Nova Scotia, their home, they could not wait. I 
therefore did not see them nor learn their names. She 
however urged home upon them the importance and 
necessity of imitating the example, and applying the dy- 
ing injunction of their shipmate to their own souls. They 
said they would, with God's help, and expressed the be- 
lief that they were already endeavoring to lead godly 
lives, as a result of his faithfulness. Let us hope that they 
remained true to their promise, and that they may meet 
him living among the ransomed throng who have u gone 
up through much tribulation, and washed their robes and 
made them white in the blood of the Lamb." 

SEAMEN GRATEFUL. 

Not the least prominent among the traits of character 
displayed by the sailor, is his gratitude for favors received. 
Without exaggeration, I could fill a good-sized book with 
testimony in proof of this statement. I believe that gra- 
titude is a normal characteristic, and that like many 
others, this one is more largely developed at sea, or is 
brought out more prominently by the consciousness that 
others have their welfare at heart. Scarcely a letter came 
to me in all my ministry among these men, that was not 
freighted down to the wales with grateful acknowledgment 
of service rendered, and with invocations for the divine 
blessing to rest upon me and mine, even when the w r riter 
had not himself openly acknowledged his indebtedness to 
God. 



1 32 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

The reason for this may be, that sailors are so seldom 
the recipients of favors; have so little done for them from 
disinterested motives, and are brought so seldom into 
contact with those who seek their good, that when the 
disposition to benefit them is manifest, a sense of grati- 
tude spontaneously springs up in the heart, and finds 
expression by tongue or pen. This, doubtless, is on the 
principle embodied in a question and answer, which I 
found in a poem, I think of "George Sands," many years 
ago. The inquiry was suggested by the effect of sudden 
joy, on one who gave way under it. 

" How is it, that the heart, 
That could bear up against evils numberless, 

One happy moment, thus should quite o'erpower ?" 

The response contains the solution of the mystery. 
*' So rarely good our portion is, 
The smile of joy so rare, 
The glad surprise of sudden bliss 
We never learn to bear." 

There is much in the life of the sailor, that is associated 
with the dark side of our humanity. He is so often 
roughly treated, not only tempest-tossed and buffeted of 
winds and waves, the sport of the cruel elements in na- 
ture, but too often roughly handled by more cruel men. 
this account he frequently finds it necessary to place 
himself, if not in a position of absolute antagonism to his 
fellow-men, yet in an attitude of defence, in which the 
•her features of his own nature are excited to resist- 
ance. But when he becomes the recipient of unexpect- 
ed unearned favors, then his own better nature is de- 
ped, and his heart gushes forth in grateful response. 
I quote an instance or two, as examples : 



"SICK, AND YE VISITED ME." 183 

11 My Dear Sir — As I am to sail to-day for my native place, I 
cannot leave without tendering to you my sincere thanks for your 
kindness and attention to me during my sickness, and also for 
the good counsel you have given me. 0, that I had not grieved 
the Spirit so long, and so many times ! While sitting under your 
ministry, I have many times made up my mind to come and 
open my heart to you, and tell you how the Holy Spirit was 
influencing me. The very last time I heard you I was on my 
way to tell you my feelings, but the wicked one suggested ' some 
other time.' I am now resolved, from this time forward, to live 
nearer to the Lord Jesus, who died to save me. Now, my dear 
sir, pray for me, that the Lord may pour out his Holy Spirit upon 
me, and that I may live m communion with him who has saved 
me from perdition so many times. He has given me many loud 
calls, which I have refused ; and now, sir, I ask you to pray for 
me, to unite your petitions with mine, that I may have an abid- 
ing interest in the kingdom of heaven. " J. A. R." 

Another, dated later, announcing his arrival at the port 
of lading, and expressing his regrets that he cannot get 
ashore to attend the house of God, adds : 

1 ' I am sure that God will meet with me, wherever I am. It 
was very painful for me to leave you, because I enjoyed so 
many happy seasons in the Mariners' church. I thank you 
and your congregation for kindnesses shown me. I have en- 
deavored to distribute the reading matter you gave me, and it 
has been gratefully received. I am satisfied with my position, 
as far as I am personally concerned. The captain is brutal in 
his treatment of the crew, but he lets me alone. I have had 
ven' many happy nights since we left you, and I have felt that 
your prayers were ascending with mine to the throne of grace. 
I hope you and your congregation will continue to pray for me, 
that I may persevere in the good old way. " 

Still another: 

"I thank you for the letter, and for the tract inclosed, whi^ K 



[84 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

bo kindly sent me. It is good advice that you give. I 

hope, with the help of the Holy Spirit, to follow it. I am 
determined, by the grace of God, to persevere. I ask an interest 

in the prayers of the church." 

Yet one more : 

" Jfv Dear Friend — Could you but have a slight idea of the joy 
and happiness which your interesting and encouraging letter of 
the 2 2nd caused me, and how it drew forth my very heart, in 
thanksgiving and praises to him who so loved the world as to 
give his only begotten Son to save it, you would doubtless feel 
yourself amply rewarded for the time spent in writing it, and 
would be greatly encouraged in your labors of love. I am, 
indeed, greatly indebted to you for sending me such an instruct- 
ive epistle. It came to me as a ministering angel. As the oasis 
in the desert gives pleasure and comfort to the weary traveller, so 
it brought consolation to my soul. Be assured, that when I bow 
to commune with my Saviour, you, and the Mariners' church, 
with all its interests, and all its members, are never forgotten." 

SEAMEN ACCESSIBLE. 

We arc often asked by landsmen, whose ideas of the 
sailor's character are somewhat indefinite : " How do you 
c, r ct at these men ? Arc they easy of access ? Will they 
listen to you when you go into their boarding-houses ? 
Can you induce them to give heed to sacred things ? 
Do you really impress them ?" 

The answer to these questions is best made by giving 

facts as they occurred. On visiting a boarding-house on 

occasion, our missionary found four men engaged in 

playing cards. Without asking them to desist from that 

unprofitable way of spending their time, he says: 

"I spoke to them of the excellency of wisdom's ways, and of 






SEAMEN ACCESSIBLE. 1 85 

the present and eternal safety of the Christian. As I progressed, 
first one, then another, and another, and then another of the 
company dropped their cards and listened. Their companions 
asked them why they wished to listen to such nonsense, and 
urged them to continue the game, but they refused. Two of 
them, howeyer, accepted my imitation, and came to my office. 
After a few moments' conyersation, one of them said, ' I know 
that what you say is true, and that I would be a happier man if 
I should follow your adyice. I was brought up under faithful 
Presbyterian training, in Ireland. I often think of the time when 
I bowed at the family altar, every morning and evening, with my 
dear father and mother, brothers and sisters. Both my dear pa- 
rents encouraged me to give up my heart to Christ when young. 
But I left them to go to sea, and soon joined in the sins and fol- 
lies of my wicked companions. I have been a ringleader in ini- 
quity. My conscience has often condemned me, and I am glad 
that you have met me, and brought me here. Now I am resolved 
to lead a new life. 

" I explained to him the way of salvation, and the necessity 
not only of forsaking his sins, but also of constant and fervent 
prayer for divine grace and strength to enable him to persevere. 
I then asked him if he would bow down that night before he re- 
tired to rest, even if some of his shipmates were present, and hold 
communion with God in prayer? He replied, 'I will; for I have 
something now to do, and the sooner I set about it the better/ 
He signed the temperance pledge. We joined in prayer, and 
separated, with a promise on his part to meet me at my office 
next morning. In the morning I found him waiting for me, and 
in reply to my question, ' Did you fulfil the promise you made 
to me yesterday Y he said, ' I did. There were several shipmates 
in the room, but I did not regard them. I feel myself to be a 
sinner, and what shall I do ? O that I had seen you before ! I 
am now going to California, in a large ship. I am acquainted 
with many who will be my shipmates three or four months. They 
are all wicked, and will tease the very life out of me, if I try to be 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SEAMEN. 
b Christian. ( ) ! that I had began before, and was now on the safe 

I him to persevere, pointing him to the precious 
in the Bible, and again commended him to the care of 
hifl Saviour God, in prayer. When the runner came for him t3 
go on board, his last words were, ' Don't forget to pray for me.' 
11 I have not had the pleasure of meeting with that young Irish- 
man since, but I expect to meet him when he shall have entered 
into i the full enjoyment of that which he was so earnestly seeking. 
re have been many of ihe fifteen hundred seamen who have 
called at my office, and also those whom I have seen at the 
lin^-houses, who had not given such evident tokens of being 
under the teachings and controlling influence of the Holy Spirit 
as that young man ; yet many of them have gone to sea having 
the good seed implanted in their hearts by Him who will cause it 
V 1 bring forth fruit unto eternal life. 

' ' When we remember that seamen are confined from one to 

e months — and sometimes three years, as on board United 

-' -hips — and that during the greater part of that time, in 

merchant ships especially, are kept at hard work, and in many in- 

re the victims of tyrannical usage, it is not to be wonder- 

l that they endeavor to take their fill of pleasure in the way 

they find most congenial to their unsanctified tastes and desires 

Oil as they get their liberty. Still we have every reason to 

in striving to induce them to forsake the paths of sin, 

and embrace the ways of righteousness. When we see them, as 

I have often been permitted to do, leave the bar and card table, 

and the brothel, and profane conversation, and gather around the 

( eive a Testament or a tract, and listen to thy 

soul- ary of th times for an hour at a time, 

re encouraged to labor on. 

"In 1 supplied a young seaman with books, who 

to Rio de Janeiro. He loaned them to 

IS then under serious impressions. The books 

were of great use to him, in deepening the conviction of sin and 



SAILORS' COMPANION. 1 87 

showing him his need of an interest in Christ. Some of his ship- 
mates ridiculed him, and called him a baby, when they saw him 
striving to forsake sin, and exhibiting a tender conscience in the 
sight of God and man. He told me afterwards that he would 
rather be one of Christ's babes than to run the risk of losing his 
soul forever. The vessel in which he came to this city, arrived 
at Quarantine on Sunday morning. The captain went on shore, 
and left orders with the mate to have the sails unbent, and some 
painting done. The second mate called on the young sailor, 
who was but fifteen years of age, to do the painting. He object- 
ed, on account of its being the Sabbath ; but the officer told him 
it was the captain's orders, and therefore the work must be done. 
He respectfully persisted in his refusal, although the rest of the 
crew went to work. 

1 ' It was in that interesting state of mind that I found this 
young seeker after the truth, and it was not long afterwards that 
the fulness and freeness of the Gospel offer was made fully known 
to him, and he rejoiced in Christ his Saviour. 

" In another instance I supplied a seaman with books, who 
had up to that time led an abandoned and profligate life. He 
was brought to conviction by reading the experience of our pastor, 
Rev. Mr. Jones, as related in the 'Sailors' Companion.' He 
found peace in believing in the Saviour, and at once began to try 
to be useful in the Master's service. On the next voyage some 
Testaments, tracts and books were put on board of the vessel, and 
as the distribution of them was rather distasteful to the captain, he 
confided it to the Christian sailor. On their arrival at a Spanish 
port, he engaged in that work with alacrity and zeal. When he 
saw the Spaniards coming in crowds to the vessel for the Spanish 
Testaments, he was delighted, and enthusiastically cried out, 
1 Cuba will be Protestant before ten years expire. ' " 

As far as my own observation extends, I have never 
known a seaman who has been converted and tasted of the 
joys of redeeming love, who, settling down upon his lees 



iSS FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

and hiding his religion, passed though life satisfied with 
ting to heaven alone. A young Spanish seaman whom 
I supplied with Testaments and tracts, while he remained 
on shore, brought several of his Roman Catholic country- 
men to the office for good books. When he returned 
from sea, he bought a Spanish Bible for his father and a 
primer for his sister. These he sent home to them in 
Spain. He said, his sister, who was sixteen years old, 
would read aloud in the Bible to the whole family, and 
that his father said it was a good book. 

He brought to the office at another time two young 
Spaniards, to whom Testaments were given in their own 
tongue. They brought a third. They all became attend- 
ants at our church. Two of them were converted, and 
united with us. One became an engineer in the Spanish 
navy, and his correspondence from that hot-bed of Roman- 
ism, running through several years, testified of his faith- 
fulness to his covenant vows. 



CHAPTER IX. 

LOSS OF THE ST. DENIS — SHIP " ROBERT PARKER." 

My journal — A weeping soul — Pastoral solicitude — An amiable youth — 
Monthly concert — Increased correspondence — Social meeting — Impres- 
sions produced — Effect on dress and manners — Auxiliary volunteers — 
Sorrow on the sea — Loss of the "St. Denis " — Ship's crew converted — 
Lord's Supper — Christian farewells — Happy captain ; happy crew. 

Since my consecration to Christ, I have been in the 
habit of recording matters of personal and relative interest 
as they occurred. Sometimes, however, from excess of 
labor, the entries have been few and far between. On 
this account many things which I would be glad to recall 
have passed into oblivion. This I can but regret, as I 
turn occasionally to my diary for the purpose of confirm- 
ing some indistinct recollection, and find page after page 
a dreary blank. Yet these very blanks are not without 
their compensations ; for such is the plethora of fact and in- 
cident, that the difficulty is to make a judicious selection 
from the abundance of material at hand. There are in- 
teresting events connected with hundreds of vessels, whose 
sails have whitened every sea, and whose Christian 
mariners have borne the glad tidings to every land. A 
few of these only are appended. 

In my journal of January 29th, I find recorded : 

189 



IQO FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

Another weeping soul came this morning, asking advice and 

ks — a man whose gray hairs and haggard expression indicated 

. His threadbare garments showed plainly that the 

«n better days. His history, as he frankly related it, 

confirmed my first impressions. He had buried his wife and all 

his children. He had lost the vessel of which he was master and 

owner in a hurricane while earning the United States mail between 

S >uth and Havana. Since then he had been before the mast. 

His wife died, as she had lived, a devout Christian. He himself 

had been regular in his life, and an attendant upon church service, 

but acknowledged that he had no experimental acquaintance 

with Christ and his salvation. I spoke affectionately to him of 

his souls need, gave him a prayer-book, and some bound volumes 

and tracts. He seemed much affected, and when I prayed with 

him, wept O that his heart may yield to the invitations of Divine 

love ! 

11 January jo//i. — The number of seamen calling at the office 

clearly indicates that the Spirit of the Lord is moving powerfully 

am- >ng them. They listen to the words of Gospel truth as if they 

felt their very souls' salvation depended upon their hearing it 

aright God grant that it may be made effectual to their salva- 

Poor fellows ! they suffer so much in the present life, I 

lid they might escape from suffering in the world to come; 

:ore it is that my solicitude is so intense for their souls. 

1 the 31st an amiable young man of eighteen came to me, 

and in a tremulous voice said, 'Will you please pray for me? I am 

much interested about my soul's salvation, and I wish to give 

if to my dear Saviour. To-night I saw him again. He said, 

1 This i^ the happiest moment of my life. I have found my precious 

>ur I' This youth was one of six children, all of whom, with 

th ! father and mother, were without God in the world. His 

n wis the entering wedge of Godliness to that family, 

and they were all subsequently ronverted. The mother and three 

sons became members of my church. The sons all went into the 

war as Christian soldiers, and maintained their integrity and 



PASTORAL SOLICITUDE. 191 

Christian firmness, amid the temptations of the camp. The 
daughters married Christian men. They are now scattered over 
the country, east and west, fathers and mothers of children, who, I 
trust, will be trained for the Lord. " 

These arc but samples of the work in which we were 
engaged. Events similar to those here recorded were 
occurring almost daily. To multiply them would give 
sameness and prolixity. There are, however, three fea- 
tures of our work, the record of which is essential to any- 
thing like a complete description of the causes from 
which flowed such marvellous effects. These are the 
monthly concert of prayer, the social meetings, and the 
auxiliary volunteers. The monthly concert of prayer 
was a necessary outgrowth of the organization of the 
church. Very early in my ministry, in New York, I 
urged the men who came under my pastoral notice to 
write, if possible, from every port. I had a double pur- 
pose in this request. First, I wished to know whether 
the impressions made upon their minds while on shore, 
were permanent ; and if so, whether they increased or 
diminished in intensity. Secondly, how far their influ- 
ence was effectual in molding the opinions and lives of 
their shipmates. This correspondence would lead the 
seaman to notice the progress of his own spiritual life, 
and to watch against any conduct that would bring 
reproach on the Christian name which he bore. At the 
same time it would put me in possession of such facts as 
would be of value in cautioning others in the incipiency 
of their Christian life, and supply me also with arguments 
with which to urge them on in the good work. 

As an inducement to faithfulness in this direction, 
I promised, on my part, to respond on all suitable occa- 



KITTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

sions to their epistles, and give such counsel and direc- 
tions as would encourage them in their Christian course. 
In consequence of this arrangement, a burden of duty 
rested on me, which, at length, in connection with other 
multiplying cares, assumed alarming proportions. Lest 
I should even seem to exaggerate, I will give the figures 
from actual records. During the last three months of 
1854, I wrote eighty-nine letters ; in 1855, three hundred 
and ninety-three; in 1856, four hundred and five ; in 
1S57, f° ur hundred and thirty-five; in 1858, five hun- 
dred and sixty-two; in 1859, eight hundred and fifty- 
three ; in i860, nine hundred and seventy-one ; in 1861, 
ten hundred and sixty; in 1862, eleven hundred and 
forty-five ; and in a part of 1863, eight hundred and ten. 
That is, in eight years and six months, six thousand 
seven hundred and twenty-six. These were sent to over 
two hundred men-of-war, in addition to merchant vessels, 
and to more than two hundred different points, represent- 
ing the five great divisions of the globe. The largest 
number written in any one month, was one hundred and 
forty-six ; in January, 1863. The largest number 
received was one hundred and twenty-seven, in the same 
month. The average of letters written, from 1859 to 
[863, was largely over one thousand per annum, and the 
average received for the same period nine hundred and 
eighty-seven. The reason for computing the average 
from 1859 instead of 1855, is that it was after the revival 
of 1858, onboard the U. S. recruiting-ship 'North Caro- 
lina,' that the correspondence very largely increased. 
It will be readily seen that in so voluminous an inter- 
change of letters there must have been much that was 
of too great intrinsic value to be selfishly enjoyed by the 



SOCIAL MEETING. 1 93 

pastor alone, or to be left slumbering uselessly in the 
pigeon-holes of the office-desk ; hence the inauguration 
of a monthly concert of prayer. 

At this meeting, on the evening of the first Sabbath 
of the month, extracts from sailors' letters were read from 
the pulpit. By this arrangement, Christian seamen, 
from every zone, were brought into sympathetic unity 
with their brethren at home. It was always a stimulating 
as well as an instructive exercise. It interested Christian, 
workers of different denominations, who came down in 
large numbers from the uptown churches, and who, catch- 
ing the divine glow as it shone forth in the correspond- 
ence of these earnest men of the sea, were incited to 
greater efforts in their own church work. This exercise 
growing in interest, and in the extent of its influence, 
proved, as the revival spread, a rich blessing to many 
souls. 

The venerable Doctor Wm. Adams preached for me 
one Sabbath evening, and in the course of his address, 
expressing his approval of our methods of working, said : 

1 We, in our efforts in the up-town churches, seem to be like 
one who has arranged a number of bottles, and attempts to fill 
thtm by throwing a pailful of water over them. By this process 
a few drops may fall into each ; but you, more wisely, take each 
bottle by the neck, and with a funnel in its mouth, fill it to the 
brim." 

The second of these elements of usefulness was the 
social meeting. This was established immediately after 
the church was organized. On the second Wednesday 
evening of each month the parlors of the parsonage were 
thrown open to the members of the church and congre- 
gation. On the previous Sabbath an invitation was 
9 



194 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

given from the pulpit to all sailors, irrespective of color, or 
nationality, Of rank, to be present, from seven o'clock until 
ten, at which hour, sharp, the meeting closed with sing- 
ing, prayer and the benediction. The evening was 
:ipied in general conversation, and simple refreshments 
were served. On many occasions, from one hundred to 
one hundred and twenty were present. At these gather- 
ings the church members became better acquainted with 
each other, and with the congregation, and special effort 
was made on the part of pastor and people to introduce 
sailors to their true friends and to each other. In this way 
friendships were formed which in some instances ripened 
into affection, and continued " until death do us part." 
These ocean wanderers were made to feel that they were 
not only welcome, but that they were conferring a real 
pleasure on those who desired to do them good. 

I am more than satisfied that it would be impossible 
to compute the value of the influence exerted by this 
meeting. The impressions made by it on the minds of 
seamen, as well as their morals, was manifestly great and 
good. This was seen in the avidity with which they 
availed themselves of the invitations to attend, the 
^ure they had in anticipating the time of its recur- 
rence, and in the fact that it became full often the staple 
of conversation in the forecastle and in the cabin at sea. 
It was accepted by the sailors as a practical evidence of 
our desire to do them good, and was appreciated accord- 

'y. Its effect was noted in the effort put forth on the 
pait of the men to " tidy up," both in dress and manners 
for the occasion. Sometimes one, who had ventured in 
for the first time, after glancing at the surroundings, 
would slip out again, run to his boarding-house, and, 



AUXILIARY VOLUNTEERS. 1 95 

after some attention to his toilet, return and enjoy the 
rest of the evening. A meeting of this kind was, of 
course, attended with labor, care, expense and self-denial 
on the part of the household. But my wife and children 
were so heartily in accord with the work, and in such 
deep sympathy with my efforts, that it became literally a 
labor of love. 

AUXILIARY VOLUNTEERS. 

The third feature, to which we owed much of our suc- 
cess, was the organization of a band of young men, who, 
having volunteered for the work, districted those portions 
of the city where sailors " most do congregate," and went 
out two by two, as did the evangelists in the days of our 
Lord, for the purpose of inviting men to the house of 
God. A monthly report of the numbers thus brought in 
showed that in the course of a year an average of four 
thousand persons were induced to attend divine service, 
many of whom, in all probability, would never have 
trodden the sacred courts but for their self-denying effort 
Certain it is, that many have attributed their first re- 
ligious impressions to the visits made in accordance with 
those invitations. I have the names of many who were 
thus allured from the haunts of sin. Some of these 
rescued ones are in positions of honor, and trust, and 
usefulness to-day. Some are in the ministry, and are in 
no wise among the least useful of their class. 

I ought to mention here an encouraging fact, which 
serves to illustrate how God sometimes 

' ' Creates a soul 
Under the ribs of death. " 

In other words, how death is the means often of 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

bringing a soul to life. On the third Sabbath in Jan- 
uary, [856, I preached on the loss of the ship St. Denis, 
of New York, which foundered at sea on her passage to 
Havre, thirteen days previous. By this calamity Cap- 
tain Follansbie and thirty-four of his passengers and 
crew found a watery grave — eleven only, out of a total of 
forty-six, escaping in a boat which had been stove and 
had one of her gunwales torn off. So fearful a disaster 
seemed to me to call for more than ordinary mention. I 
felt that it offered an opportunity for a practical appeal 
to the men of the sea, and especially to the members of 
my own congregation, many of whom were, like the 
Apostle, " in deaths oft." I took for my text, " There is 
sorrow on the sea." Jer. xlix. 23. I made this the 
basis of an appeal to men to prepare to meet their God. 
I have very little recollection of what I said, or how I 
said it, having made only a skeleton of the discourse. 
But I know the people were moved to tears — a tide of 
emotion swept over the audience. Many hearts were 
bowed under that sorrow, many souls were filled with 
anguish. It was a most solemn season. The imme- 
diate effect of it was the inquiry on the part of many, 
u What must I do to be saved ?" 

During the week the fruit began to appear. At the 
Tuesday evening lecture a number of young men were 
present, who, at the close of the service, gathered into 
the study. Some fifteen of them, burdened with a sense 
of sin, were asking prayers and inquiring what they 
should do to secure the salvation of their souls ? A few 
days later I received a letter from a sailor, dated Janu- 
ary 31st, in which he says : 

• My dear Sir — I have pleasure hi stating to yon that I am 



LOSS OF THE ST. DENIS. 1 97 

much happier than I was when I first heard you preach the 
Gospel which saves the souls of poor seamen. 1 was invited by 
a friend to go and hear you preach a sermon on the loss of the 
St. Denis, and I must say, that that was a happy sermon to me. 
It was the first time in my life that I felt that I had a soul to be 
saved. Since then I have spent my time in praising God. I 
can testify that I have been happier than ever I was before. 
My tongue cannot give expression to the joy I feel at present in 
the assurance of my soul's eternal walfare. It is joy unspeakable 
and full of glory to be able to throw myself at the foot of the 
Cross, and say to Jesus, my Saviour : 

' Here Lord, I give myself away, 
Tis all that I can do.' 

' ' I know that I must expect to suffer for his sake, but the 
Scripture says, ' If a man suffer as a Christian, let him not be 
ashamed.' 

"J. F. K." 

A couple of weeks later I received a note from Wil- 
mington, N. C, dated February 17th, 1856, from the 
second-officer of a vessel, saying : 

"lam pleased to have an opportunity of informing you that 
I am well ; and above all, I am thankful to the Lord for so 
great a blessing as that which I have received. The religion of 
Jesus Christ fills my soul with joy inexpressible. I do thank 
God that I was spared to hear that sermon that you preached on 
the loss of the Saint Denis. It has proved a blessed one to me. 
I felt when I heard it, that, without the assistance of God, it 
would be impossible for me to be saved. I desire an interest in 
the prayers of your congregation, that I may be kept ever in the 
strait and narrow way that leads to life everlasting. Please an- 
swer this as soon as you receive it, and if there are any letters 
for me, forward them, and oblige your humble servant, 

"A. W. H," 



IcjS FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

Still later, March 28th, 1856, an affectionate missive 
came to me from Barbadoes, W. I., in which the writer 

'I Bend you a written testimony of my conversion to God 

It is with a deep interest in Divine things that I entered upon the 

duties of this voyage. It is entirely unlike any of the former 

Old things are fast fading away, and new and holy 

thoughts are taking their places. O, sir, I never knew before 

what a blessed thing religion is ! I shall ever consider the day 

on which I first saw you, as the happiest day of my life. My 

mind is at ease — my soul is lifted up above all earthly thoughts 

The more I think upon my Saviour's loving kindness, 

the more am I convinced of my own unworthiness. I am only 

f that I did not commence earlier ; but I will trust in the 

1, and hope to receive that grace which he has promised to 

all." 

Expressing a strong desire to be once more in our 
church, where he was first awakened to his peril, he 
closes by saying: 

14 I hope many more have been led to review their past lives, 
And Bee themselves in their true light. This is the constant 
prayer of your sincere friend and brother in Christ, 

"F. C. H." 

Surely such testimonies indicate that the Divine word 
is accompanied and enforced by the power of the Holy 
Spirit, as in Apostolic times, and that nothing is too hard 
for the Lord. Such evidences of Divine and graciou: 
interposition also illustrate the susceptibility of the sailorY 
heart to the renovating power of Gospel truth. Of tl 
men at the meeting of January 24th, 1856, one, over 
sixty years old, had been fifty years at sea, and had only 



LOSS OF THE ST. DENIS. 1 99 

given his heart to God the week previous. Another, who 
had been at sea thirty-five years, surrendered to the Di- 
vine spirit on that very day. No better evidence of the 
value and permanence of these impressions can be given 
than the fact that both these men are to-day, January, 
1884, inmates of the Sailors' Snug Harbor, are still walk- 
ing in the way of the Lord, maintaining a marked Chris- 
tian character, and are growing stronger and stronger 
each day. 

Another incident connected with this blessed work of 
grace claims a record here, because it resulted in the con- 
version of almost an entire ship's crew, officers included. 

It was on the 23rd of January. I had spent the two 
days previous in procuring clothing for the survivors of 
the ship St. Denis, who, the day after their vessel went 
down, were rescued in mid ocean, having lost everything 
but what they stood in. The American Seamen's Friend 
Society had appropriated one hundred dollars toward the 
outfit of eight of the number. Filled with sympathy for 
the poor fellows, and grateful to God for the privilege of 
assisting in making provision for their wants, I took ad- 
vantage of their deliverance to impress upon their minds 
the necessity of consecrating to God's service the lives he 
had so mercifully spared, and was gratified to hear them 
express their purpose to be more thoughtful of divine 
things for the future. As they left me with their thanks- 
givings and their expressions of gratitude for the favors 
received still ringing in my ears, my heart went up to 
my heavenly Father in grateful acknowledgment of his 
abounding grace in placing me where I could be of ser- 
vice to these men, who were so hungry for human sym- 
pathy. 



200 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

In this frame of mind, although so fatigued as to make 
it painful to walk, 1 went in the evening to the prayer- 
meeting at the Sailors' Home, at which many seamen 
were present. I made a fervent appeal to them to sub- 
mit to Christ, enforcing my argument, by a reference to 
the loss of the Saint Denis. There was great solemnity 
in the audience, and not a few were in tears. At the 
e of the meeting the chief-officer of the ship, Robert 
Parker, came to me, and said : " You, sir, are the first 
man who has ever touched my heart, and I feel a strong 
de-ire for the salvation of my soul. What shall I do ! '■ 
At the same moment the second-officer of the same ves- 
sel drew near and addressed me. He was in a similar 
condition, and desired help. I invited them both to my 
study. They came home with me, accompanied by a 
young Christian brother and by the carpenter of their 
own ship, who was a professor of religion, and deeply 
interested in the salvation of his shipmates. I spoke with 
them some time on the blessedness of the service of 
Christ, and the impossibility of engaging in it and meeting 
its responsibilities, unless our sins were purged away by 
his atoning blood, and our souls justified by faith in his 
one offering on the Cross. I also urged the absolute 
necessity of submitting to him at once. They both lis- 
d attentively, and before leaving, resolved, with divine 
help! to live henceforth for Christ alone, and to give 
themselves unreservedly to him. I proposed to ratify 
that purpose on the spot, and bowed in prayer with them. 

When I closed, to my surprise, they all four poured out 
their hearts in fervent prayer. Blessed be the name of 
the Lord ! Thus the ice of indifference was broken, and 
the good work for eternity auspiciously begun. 



HAPPY CAPTAIN ! HAPPY CREW ! 201 

A few days later I visited their ship, to learn what pro- 
gress they were making, and found them happy in their 
first love. I encouraged them to persevere, and prayed 
with them in the cabin. It was a precious season to us 
all. On that day a recent convert of our church joined 
the ship, in order that he might be in good company. 
On the Sabbath the whole crew were at church. On 
Wednesday, the captain, a devout man, called at the 
study to talk over the events of the last few days. He 
rejoiced greatly in the conversion of his officers, and an- 
ticipated the happiness to arise from the changed condi- 
tion of things. 

As the time drew near for the ship to sail, and they 
found that they must leave before the communion Sabbath, 
they expressed a desire to be enrolled as members of the 
new organization. They were therefore examined and 
received on a confession of their faith. On the evening 
before their departure, a meeting of the members elect 
was held at the parsonage, and the Lord's Supper admin- 
istered to them. It was a solemn service, and one not 
soon to be forgotten. On the morrow a number of us 
accompanied them to the ship. The captain muster- 
ed the hands aft, and addresses were made by the mis- 
sionary and myself, urging them all to faithfulness in the 
Lord. After which we kneeled and prayed with and 
for them, " committing them to God and to the word of 
his grace." 

Shortly after this she sailed — the captain, both mates, 
the carpenter, and three of the crew going forth in the 
strength of the Lord. Happy captain ! happy crew ! 
Before leaving, the second- officer put into my hands the 

following expression of thanks ; 
9 * 



202 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

"To you, sir, and the kind friends who have manifested so 

much interest in me sinee I came to New York, I am truly 

grateful I thank God, too, for sending me here. I am a 

brand plucked from the burning. He has delivered me from 

the bonds o( Satan, in which I have been held so many years. 

Q this time I feel determined to serve the Lord, and to travel 

in th 1 way until I arrive where Jesus, my great Captain, 

May God bless you, and put words in your mouth 

\hat will si ie poor sinner the error of his way, as you have 

m me the error of mine. Pray for me while I am away, that 

I may return rich in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord 

Jesus Christ" 

The chief- officer sent the following note, which I give 
entire, because it displays the true missionary spirit which 
animated so many of our sailor converts: 

u Dear Brother and Friend — It is with feelings of gratitude to 
i 1 these lines to you, as an expression of my grate- 
ful i you, and the kind friends in New York, for the 
t they have shown to me and my shipmates, 
i for time and eternity. I hope, sir, that the good I have 
experienced under your ministry will produce a holy life in me, 
and tint the Lord will make me useful in his hands in bringing 
many poor sinners out of that darkness of sin, in which I spent 
BO II- of my life. I pray, too, that many more may, by 
your instrumentality, be brought to see their fallen condition, and 
flee V> him who came to seek and save them that are lost Pray 
f»r Hi'-, that I may be faithful to the Lord." 

On the eleventh of April following, the captain wrote 
from Liverpool as follows: 

11 Through the : r tnd mercy of God, we were brought 

After leaving New York, we com- 
menced prayers in the evening, and on the Sabbath, wind and 



HAPPY CAPTAIN ! HAPPY CREW ! 203 

weather permitting, and we always had a good attendance. I 
was pleased to find, also, that a number of the crew met some- 
times in the second cabin, and sometimes in the forecastle, to 
sing the praise of him who controls both wind and sea. We 
have often united in prayer for the prosperity of the Mariners' 
church in New York, and for you, that you may be successful in 
the very important work to which you have been called. You 
will have much to try you, much to contend with, but do not be 
discouraged. More is he who is for you than all that can be 
against you. Never give up the cause of seamen. May God 
bless and prosper you in your work, is the earnest prayer of your 
unworthy brother in the faith of Jesus. " 

Another illustration of the unselfish and laborious ef- 
forts of these consecrated men of the sea, comes to me 
through a beloved brother whose heart is in the work : 

"New York, March 2nd, 1856. 

" Dear Brother — Under the hope that the following intelligence 
may be encouraging to God's people, I enclose it. Mr. George 
A. Seaver, a young man who was bred to the sea, but who was 
brought by the grace of God to the saving knowledge of our Lord 
Jesus Christ, about three years since, and is now pursuing his 
studies at a western college, with the view of preaching the ever- 
lasting Gospel of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ to a perishing 
world, writes under date of the 23rd ult, with the pleasing infor- 
mation that they are enjoying an outpouring of God's Holy Spirit 
on the institution. The following is an extract from his letter : 

"The Spirit of God is being poured out upon us here, and the 
vilest of our students are turning to the Lord. It is a joyful 
sight The Saviour is exalted, and prayer and praise are bursting 
forth from every heart in the college. I have great cause to re- 
joice, for the first of these converts was my room-mate, and now 
there are one hundred or more added to that one. May God 
send me another room-mate who is unacquainted with the love of 



204 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SEAMEN. 

OUT Immanuel, and crown my efforts and prayers with his conv***- 
sion. 

"A gentleman residing in Chicago told me a few days since, 
that God is also greatly blessing the labors of our good Brother 
amid, of the Bethel church there ; that there is a precious re- 
vival. Daily meetings are held, sailors and their wives and oth- 
Qodring to the church and asking, ' What must I do to be 
I ?' He adds, ' It is only in this Bethel that there appears 
am particular interest of a spiritual nature. Blessed be God for 
these and other manifestations of his mercy ! and that he is doing 
so much for and through these men of the sea. May these mer- 
cies be only the precursor of a mighty shower of Divine grace on 
the sons of the ocean, and may the time rapidly approach when 
the precious prediction shall be fulfilled, ' Because the abundance 
of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles 
shall come unto thee." (Isa. lx. 5.) 



CHAPTER X. 

COADJUTORS — WHAT THE LIGHTNING DID. 

Increasing labors — My coadjutors — William D. Harris — His work — His 
death — Testimony to his faithfulness— Captain Gelston — His conversion 
— Missionary spirit — Sailors* Home — Love for souls — L. P. Hubbard — 
Bible distribution — Faithful worker — Ola Helland — Sailor turned 
preacher — Scandinavian services — Chaplain — J. H. Gardner — Conversion 
— Baxter's Call — Thirty years of missionary life — Captain Elliott — Ten 
years before the mast — Prayer on the topsail yard — Conversion — Rapid 
promotion — Preaching captain — Paternal discipline — Doctor Damon's 
testimony — Closing scene — Other names — What the lightning did — An 
English school-ship — Precociously profane — Struck by lightning — Nev- 
ins's Practical Thoughts — Burden falls off — Mariners' church — New life — 
Working for Christ — The last voyage — Cry of despair — Worship at sea 
— Souls converted — Prayers in the forecastle — Foremost in the fight — 
Total separation — The missing bark. 

With the birth of the new enterprise, fresh impetus 
was given to our church work. The Lord smiled on our 
efforts, followed them with increased prosperity, and 
inspired us all with hope for the future. Calls to labor 
multiplied, both at home and abroad. An impression 
having gone out that the Lord was with us of a truth, 
requests for assistance and information came from other 
churches. To all of these, as far as I could, without 
detriment to our own field, I cheerfully responded, and 
entered every open door. With each year the labors 

205 



206 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

Irene more varied and abundant. I was favored in this, 
however, that while I was lending a helping hand to 
others, the laboring oar was cheerfully seized by coadjutors 
at home. Never was man more blessed than I in the 
number, character, zeal and energy of my helpers. No 

rd of our successful career would be complete if these 
indefatigable and self-denying workers, four of whom 
have preceded me to the better land, had not honorable 
mention. 

Foremost among these was Wm. D. Harris, a Christian 
gentleman of refinement and education, and a trustee 
of the Port Society. He was among the first to welcome 
me to my new field of labor. Always full of affectionate 
and fraternal sympathy, he gave me his hearty support; 
which, under all our varied and exciting experiences, con- 
tinued unbroken to the end. He was devoted to the 
interests of the sailor, and to the success of the church ; 
eminently laborious, severely practical, and in every 
department pre-eminently useful. Having travelled by 
sea as a supercargo in his earlier days, he became familiar 
with the trials, exposure and moral needs of the 
men of the sea. To them he gave thirty-five years of 
unselfish labor, twenty-nine of which he was connected 
with the Port Society. Having no home cares, he 
employed his time in caring for others. He was in the 
habit of carrying assorted tracts with him, and a well 
filled wallet; and the cases of real need, either physical 

spiritual, that he did not relieve, were few indeed. 
Hi- general oversight of church affairs, his personal 

laintancc with the families of the congregation, and 

anxiety for the spiritual welfare of all, made him 
an invaluable assistant in my pastoral work. He entered 






CAPTAIN GELSTON. 207 

i-:cc rest in July, 1875, aged seventy-four years. The 
Port Society, on that occasion, passed, among other 
complimentary resolutions, the following : 

" Resolved, The bright Christian example of our late associate, 
as shown in his consistent life, his ardent piety, his love for 
souls, his constant endeavor to win sinners to Christ, his open 
ear to sufferings' cry, and ready hand to relieve the distressed, is 
well worthy of our imitation, and should be an incentive for us 
to follow in his steps." 

He rests from his labors, and his works do follow him. 
May the blessed succession of faithful laborers in this field 
of Christian effort never die out. 

Captain Roland Gelston was a man of different 
type, but none the less devoted and useful in his sphere. 
He entered the ship by the hawse-hole, and with com- 
mendable energy, integrity and untiring effort, worked 
his way aft to the quarter-deck, which, by frugality and 
industry, he was at length enabled to walk as master 
and owner. With a common-school education he com- 
bined much practical wisdom and business tact, and en- 
joyed "the blessing of God, " which " maketh rich, and he 
addeth no sorrow therewith." He had a large heart, and 
a charity that looked upon every man as his brother. As 
an officer, he ruled by love rather than by law, and never 
found discipline impaired by its exercise. In his tongue 
was the law of kindness. He had an attractive smile and 
a winning tone that drew men toward him, and through 
him to the Saviour, whom he so tenderly loved. It was 
while chief-officer of a vessel that he was brought to see 
himself a sinner, and to consecrate himself to Christ. In 
this act there was no mental reservation, no half-way 



208 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

surrender. The offering he laid upon God's altar was a 
holocaust — spirit, soul, body, time, talent, influence — all 
— all M filled his hand" when he gave himself to Christ. 

In 1837 1 )C l°ft the sea to engage in missionary work, 
lie held meetings on shipboard and along the wharves, 
distributed the Scriptures and other religious reading 
matter, and persuaded men to abstain from intoxicating 
drinks. The scenes of drunkenness and iniquity he witness- 
ed in rumselling boarding-houses — almost the only ones 
then known — led him to suggest the importance and ne- 
cessity of establishing decent boarding-houses on temper- 
ance principles, where the sailor would be removed from 
the temptations of strong drink. He became a prime 
mover in that enterprise. 

In conjunction with my predecessor, Rev. Henry 
Chase, and a band of Christian women from the different 
evangelical churches, a temperance boarding-house, call- 
ed the M Sailors' Home," was furnished and opened under 
his management, at No. 140 Cherry street, in 1838. This 
new undertaking contributed much toward the moral 
elevation of seamen, and became an efficient auxiliary 
to the mariners' churches. The movement became pop- 
ular, and under the fostering care of the American Sea- 
l's Friend Society, grew into the more commodious 
Home, 190 Cherry street, opened under his supervision 
and conducted by him in 1842. He was " instant in sea- 
son, out of season — in every good work abounding." He 
continued to visit ships and hospitals and boarding-houses 
with the word of life, and his labors were signally blest. 

Subsequently he returned to sea-life, and took com- 
mand of a barque, of which he was part owner. While 
trading on the West Coast, he visited San Francisco. 



MISSIONARY SPIRIT. 209 

This was before the discovery of gold. Here he was in- 
duced to invest in a tract of land, which afterwards be- 
came a source of more trouble than profit, and from which 
he realized only disappointment and sorrow. After Cal- 
ifornia came into the Union, the title by which he held 
was ignored by the courts, and he died, poor in this 
world's goods, but rich in faith, and an "heir of the king- 
dom." 

My first acquaintance with Captain Gelstonwas in 184 1, 
while I was yet a sailor. Our mutual interest in the 
Mariners' church, was welded at a later date. In the 
summer of 1855, in the intervals of his short voyages to 
Central America, he was a constant attendant upon our 
church services. He threw himself with all the energy 
of his loving soul into the blessed work. It was he who 
organized the band of young volunteers who visited the 
lower wards of the city to invite sailors to the house of 
God. His missionary spirit was ever on the alert. A 
letter received from him while passenger on board one of 
the Pacific Mail steamships, will illustrate this. It is 
dated at sea, April 26th, 1856: 

1 1 As we have no minister on board, we shall have no religious 
sendee to-day, but many of my fellow cabin passengers will un- 
expectedly find a tract in their state-rooms — nor will the forward 
passengers be neglected. We have a pious steward on board, 
and by his assistance my stock of tracts will be fully distributed ; 
even 7 one of them a sermon, if owned and blessed of God. 
How often do they prove, among persons situated as we are, 
more powerful than the voice of the living preacher in awakening 
the careless and thoughtless ! No church-going bell will be heard 
here to-day. They will therefore receive these welcome mes- 
sengers, as cold water to the thirsty soul, as ' good news from a 
far country/ 
14 



210 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

"You will, I trust, remember and pray for me and for all 

other who are laboring as the Lord shall give them 

heart and opportunity, to bring about the conversion ofth 

down to the sea in ships,' and for whom Jesus died. 1 

think seamen must be peculiarly dear to the Redeemer, as he has 

ired his intention, by them as instruments, to bring about the 

thering of the nations. For only when they are converted, 

the Gentiles come in. May the Lord prosper and keep you! 

May your hands be staved by the prayers of your brethren, and 

tant accessions be made to the numbers of those who shall 

be finally saved." 

The correspondence of this dear brother, his counsels 
and his co-operation, while ashore, were of incalculable 
value to me in my ministry, from 1855 t° the day of his 
death, in California, in August, 1868. 

Another of these devoted men was LUTHER P. HUB- 
BARD, our recording secretary and assistant treasurer. 
B fore coming to us he had been for seventeen years the 
efficient and only agent of the New York City Bible Soci- 
ety. I lis labors were principally among the seamen of the 
port. Underthcdirection of the Marine Committee, he dis- 
tributed copies of the sacred scriptures to ships and men 
until he was compelled to retire on account of ill-health, 
in the early part of 1852. On his recovery, after a few 
months, he returned to the city, and resumed his mission- 
ary work, at his own charges. It was while he was thus 
employed that the New York Port Society engaged him 

their financial agent. He entered at once upon his 
new dtities and served the society with great fidelity 
until the spring of 1863. In addition to the collecting 
of funds, and the duties of recording secretary, he gave 
efficient aid in church work, visiting boarding-houses and 



REV. OLA HELLAND. 211 

ships, and inviting men to church. Twenty-five years 
of continued missionary effort among sailors, neither 
cooled the ardor of his love nor impaired his Christian 
zeal. He still lives and labors in the same blessed cause, 
and at the age of seventy-five seems no less active than 
when we were co-workers a quarter of a century ago. 

Rev. Ola HELLAND, the fourth in this category of 
helpers, was a Norwegian sailor, converted in the old 
Mariners' church in Roosevelt street, in 1837. He was i n ~ 
daced to attend by the invitation of our Brother Hubbard. 
Immediately upon his conversion, he set to work to 
rescue others from the bondage of sin, by leading them 
to Christ. Having displayed an aptitude to move the 
hearts of men by his earnest and eloquent appeals in his 
native tongue, and being withal a very zealous laborer, 
he was licensed by the Methodist Episcopal Church to 
preach the gospel. The Port Society engaged him in 
the summer of 1855, as a missionary among the Scandina- 
vian sailors, and from his lips many of the Swedes, Danes, 
Norwegians and Finns heard the gospel — " every man 
in his own language, wherein he was born." A weekly 
prayer-meeting was conducted by Brother Helland, in 
conjunction with Charles M. Anderson, among these 
North Sea sailors, and very many of them were con- 
verted, some of whom returned to their homes to tell their 
friends and countrymen of the Saviour they had found in 
the United States. 

We had satisfactory evidence that their efforts at win- 
ning souls were not without good results in their father- 
land. In the first ten months our Brother H. attended 
as many religious meetings as there are days in the year; 
induced over four hundred persons to attend church, 



212 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

prayed in private with seventy-eight persons, of whom 
v were hopefully converted. In addition, he visited 
the sick at their homes and in hospitals, and vessels 
of foreign nations, supplying them with the word of God 
in their own tongue. After a year or two with us, a 
larger sphere of usefulness opened. He was called to the 
West, to take charge of a church in the vicinity of Beloit, 
Wisconsin. Subsequently he returned to the East, and 
was for several years the faithful chaplain of the Seamen's 
Retreat, Staten Island, where he smoothed the pillow, 
and comforted the heart of many sick sailors, and 
pointed them all to the Lamb of God. He is at pres- 
ent actively engaged in the ministry, among his own 
countrymen in the West. 

I lis successor in this department was JOSEPH H. 
Gardner, a most noble, self-denying and laborious 
man of God. He was a bachelor. The Church of Christ 
was his only bride. For her he toiled early and late. 
To her he gave his time, his talents, his strength and his 
prayers. He seemed never to weary in her work. Yet 
he carried for years a weight of bodily suffering that 
would have prostrated many a stronger and less persistent 
man. It is not probable that any one, in the same time, 
distributed a larger number of copies of the sacred 
scriptures among sailors, soldiers, and families, than 
ph II. Gardner. He too was a converted sailor. 
His life until he was forty years old was spent in the 
ice of sin. While on a whaling voyage he was taken 
sick, and began to read the Bible, but could find no 
peace. In his distress he sought for other books. A 
novel was placed in his hands. This he refused, and a 
copy of ' Baxter's Call ' was given him by the steward of 



CAPTAIN ELLIOTT. 213 

the vessel, who " had no use for such a book." This 
showed him his own helplessness, and led him to pray. 
While in this state of 'mind he came to New York, 
and attended a seamen's Bible class, in the Mariners' 
church, which was taught by our Bro. Wm. D. Harris. 
Through his instruction, he says, " I was enabled to 
rejoice in Jesus Christ as my God and my Saviour." At 
the breaking out of the rebellion he resigned his position 
in the Port Society, and gave himself exclusively to the 
distribution of the word of God among the soldiers who 
were on their way to the front. In this, to him, delight- 
ful work of Bible distribution, he continued as long as he 
could walk, and then laid down peacefully to die. He 
entered joyfully into his eternal rest on Sunday, July 9th, 
1876, having passed the limit of threescore and ten, the 
last thirty years of which were spent in strictly missionary 
work. He has gone to his reward, and has heard the 
welcome plaudit, " Well done, good and faithful servant, 
enter thou into the joy of thy Lord," 
The only other I can mention is 

CAPTAIN SAMUEL ELLIOTT. 

He succeeded our deceased brother, and was in every way 
adapted to the duties he assumed on entering into the 
service of the Mariners' church. It was his meat and 
his drink to do the will of Him that sent him. His 
manner was genial, cordial and affectionate. His whole 
time and talents and strength were given " con amore," 
to his work. He was a wise counsellor, a patient labor- 
er, a most worthy assistant, and a true friend. My 
heart went out to him in a sincere affection, on our first 
acquaintance, and I never had the slightest occasion eith- 



214 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

er to withhold the confidence I had reposed in him, or 

in any way to limit our fraternal intercourse. The vigor 
and ean with which he entered upon his labors 

Uinued with undiminished zeal up to the time 
that the Master was pleased to promote him to the 
higher duties and enjoyments of the upper sanctuary. 

In the first seven months after his appointment, he 
had religious conversation with over five thousand five 
hundred seamen, with over one thousand two hundred of 
whom he bowed in prayer. He made over one thousand 
visits to sailors' boarding-houses ; attended four hundred 
and eighteen meetings, received one thousand four hun- 
dred and eighty-nine seamen in his office, and distributed 
one thousand nine hundred copies of the sacred scriptures 
in various languages. When I resigned the pastorate, in 
April, 18C3, I ^ft him still engaged in the mission work. 
The recording angel alone can estimate the extent of his 
labors during those seventeen years of consecrated effort 
and undying love for the sailor. The secret of this de- 
votion, this sanctified energy, may be found in the fact 
that he was himself a converted sailor — one who well 
knew the privations and exposures, as well as the moral 
dangers pertaining to a life at sea. He was the child 
of Presbyterian parents in Philadelphia, where he was 
born in 18 10. When about fourteen years of age he left 
his Christian home to go forth to the perils of a life at 
sea. He told me that during the first ten years of his 
life he never fell in with a pious sailor. His morals 
at that time were anything but pure, and he was far 

ie in practical infidelity and sin ; but God, who is rich 
in mercy, heard the prayers that followed him, and an- 
swered them by bringing him to a sense of his lost con- 



PRAYER ON THE TOPSAIL YARD. 215 

dition as a sinner. While on a voyage to Matanzas, he 
was brought to a saving knowledge of the truth as it is 
in Christ. He was then about twenty-five years of age, 
in the vigor of his early manhood, which he consecrated 
unreservedly to Jesus Christ his Saviour. In relating to 
me his personal experience, he said : 

"I had a job of work over the bows, and being particularly 
desirous of having it well done, I concluded to do it myself. 
There was a heavy sea running, but I had the jib hauled down, 
and over the bows I went. I had worked some ten minutes, 
sawing asunder two thick ropes, when suddenly I cast my eyes 
down toward the one on which I had been sitting, and discover- 
ed that instead of its being fast in-board, as I thought, it was 
simply stopped up with a rope yarn. ' My God !' I exclaimed, i I 
have been hanging by a yarn, that would not hold an infant ! ' 
My hair stood erect with fright. I jumped on deck and tried to 
laugh away my fears, but in vain. I had the first watch out that 
night, and while walking the deck the thought flashed through 
my mind, ' If that rope yarn had parted, where would you have 
been ? ' I answered my own question aloud, by saying, ' In hell ! 
to all intents and purposes/ I dropped instantly on my knees 
and cried for mercy. For seven days my condition was truly aw- 
ful. The captain thought I was crazy. I was praying night and 
day, whenever I could get an opportunity. But I could find no 
rest. My old Bible, that had lain at the bottom of my chest for 
years, was now drawn forth, and read with intense interest, but it 
brought me no peace. At length, almost despairing of help, and 
considering my condition hopeless, I felt like giving up the 
struggle altogether. I was sitting on the after-hatch, strapping a 
block, at the time that purpose was suggested. But I resolved, 
before I yielded to it, I would make one more effort. I there- 
fore threw down the block and marlin-spike, and started aloft. 
On reaching the main-topsail yard, I laid out on the weather 
yard-arm, and leaning forward, poured out my soul to God in the 



2l6 FIFTY VFARS AMONG SAILORS. 

most urgent entreaties for grace and help, saving/ Help, now ! 
i. or I perish ! ' and God answered my petition. 1 descend- 
ed to the deck, l a new man in Christ Jesus ;' and the happiness 
of that moment has never departed from me unto this hour." 

I may add, the life of our good brother was convincing 
evidence of the truth of that statement ; for he was a 
most joyful Christian. As soon as he found peace, he 
began to labor for the souls of his shipmates. He was a 
man of intense energy, and sublimely conscientious. 
Whatever he did, he did it with his might. By the sanc- 
tifying power of the Holy Spirit, that natural energy was 
intensified. The logic of his life was logic on fire, as 
they will readily acknowledge who have heard his impas- 
sioned utterances while pleading with sinners to come 
and surrender themselves to Christ. 

In one vessel in which he served as an officer, his 
Christian zeal offended the captain, who told him that he 
must give up his religious efforts or leave the ship ; and 
he left, rather than be unfaithful to God, or unmindful of 
the interests of his fellow-men. 

His promotion after his conversion was rapid. He 
soon became master of a vessel, and proved in that rela- 
tion, that he could serve his Saviour faithfully, and do 
his duty by the ship at the same time. He was a strict 
disciplinarian, but found no difficulty in governing his men 
by the law of love. He was in the habit of giving his 
crew Saturday afternoon to wash their clothes and clean 
lip, and wash decks, in order that the Sabbath might be 
given to rest, and to the service of God. 

an illustration of his mode of government, and of 

dtitary effect, I will relate an incident which occurred 

on board his vessel. He had shipped a man in New 



PATERNAL DISCIPLINE. 217 

Orleans, before the mast, who was a very profane and 
reckless man, an inveterate blasphemer, impatient of re- 
straint. Learning his character, Capt. E. called him aft, 
and gave him to understand that swearing would not be 
allowed on board his vessel. The man promised that he 
would endeavor to abide by the rule of the ship, and 
conform to the captain's wishes. But he soon forgot his 
promises and engaged in his usual profanity. For this he 
was kindly but firmly admonished. He acknowledged 
that he had promised to abstain, but on this occasion dis- 
played a very insubordinate spirit. Shortly after this, 
while aloft, being angry at the mate, he poured out a 
volley of curses on him. The captain heard him, and 
immediately ordered him down. But instead of threat- 
ening him with penalties, or giving way to angry words, 
he retired to his cabin quietly, and ordered the man to be 
sent to him. There he kindly expostulated with him on 
the sinfulness and wickedness of his course, appealed to 
his self-respect, to his early training, and the teaching of 
his mother. The man — unused to such paternal disci- 
pline, was moved to tears, and expressed his sorrow for his 
conduct. The captain then bowed in prayer with him, 
and in his appeal to God, brought the sailor's mother so 
vividly before him, that he was convicted of his guilt be- 
fore God, and gave way to tears of true repentance. The 
result was his conversion, and the commencement of an 
affectionate friendship between him and the captain. 
They sailed together for three or four years after that, but 
the man was never heard to swear again. 

The desire of the captain for the salvation of souls, 
]ed him to seek more extensive means of usefulness. To 

this end he united with the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
10 



2l8 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SEAMEN. 

in which he labored faithfully for many years. The 
chinch, appreciating his gifts and graces, licensed him 
local preacher, and in that capacity he did a noble 
work. He caught the spirit of the Wesleys, and whether 
at sea or on shore, his zeal for the Master, and his love 
for souls, knew no abatement. Sailors were his peculiar 
care : and whenever an opportunity presented itself, he 
strove for their salvation, pleading with them for God, 
and pleading with God for them. 

An article which appeared in the "Friend/' a paper 
published in Honolulu, Sandwich Islands, by the Rev. Dr. 
Damon, some years ago, may be cited in proof. It states: 

"A shipmaster, Captain Samuel Elliott, commanding a mer- 
chant vessel lying in this port, preached an excellent sermon from 
text, ' Who is my neighbor?' It is seldom we enjoy the priv- 
ilege of listening to a sermon, but whenever the opportunity oc- 
. we never fail to improve it. The sermon to which we now 
refer was a most timely effort. Captain Elliott being a shipmas- 
and having been connected with the New York Sailors' home, 
-marks fell with peculiar weight upon the mind. We would 
. by the way, that he was a local preacher of the Methodist 
C ban h. He spoke as one practically acquainted with the subject 
nf homes, and showed their importance so clearly, that 
we have ever since felt that the experiment should be fairly tried 
in Honolulu. He showed, too, most clearly, that all shipmas- 
logicalfy bound to promote, in ever)' possible way, the 
inent and support of such institutions. His final appeal 
t'-lii.^ brother shipmasters was so truthful and touching, that 
have alw ted that it was not committed to writing 

published In his address to landsmen, he showed, too, 
. that the sailor, in a scriptural sense, is the 
tian man ; and furthermore that the lands- 
ald DOt act the put of the priest and the Levite, but 



CAPTAIN DAMON'S TESTIMONY. 2ig 

that of the good Samaritan. Should these lines ever fall under 
Captain Elliott's notice, we desire to express our sincere thanks to 
him for that sermon. Its influence has been operating for good 
on the mind of one at least, during the last twelve months. " 

I may add, the editorial referred to was written in 
January, 1836, more than forty years before the close of 
Brother Elliott's labors. His sermon has not been lost on 
that one mind, but has some years since effloresced in- 
to the sailors' home of the Pacific at Honolulu. That 
home is to-day in charge of a sailor who was converted 
and who is now teaching a Bible class of Chinese youth, 
which he has conducted for some years past, and out of 
which has grown a Chinese church of over thirty mem- 
bers. That teacher and keeper of the home became a 
member of my church in November, 1859. He subse- 
quently went to Ireland, in 1861, and labored efficiently 
in revival scenes there in the vicinity of Dublin. Still 
later, in his ramblings, he brought up in the Sandwich 
Islands, and lo! God points out to him his peculiar sphere 
of operations among the wanderers from the Flowery 
Land. He too speaks of the influence of our good Bro- 
ther Elliott in his own religious experience. 

In a letter to the Rev. E. D. Murphy, of the Mariners' 
church, New York, after Brother Elliott's death, dated 
Nov. 25th, 1876, he says of Captain Elliott: 

" He was a man of God, in whose company one could not be 
long without loving him. My first recollections of him date 
away back to April, 1859, having then arrived in San Francisco 
in the ship ' Ivanhoe/ from New York, on board of which, 
through the instrumentality of a shipmate, a converted Jew, I 
was brought, by the mercy of God, to a knowledge of Jesus as 
my Saviour. Brother Elliott then occupied a position in the old 



220 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

^rs' Home of San Francisco, where I went to board. One 
Sabbath morning, he invited me to a class-meeting in a Metho- 
dist church, with which he was connected at that time. It was 
the first one I ever attended in my life. He conducted it, and 
OUt of a full heart spoke oi' Christ and his rich salvation. His win- 
ning, cheerful ways and words made him attractive to one's heart. 
Perhaps you may not be aware that years ago his voice was heard 
away off in these lands, long before I ever touched these shores, 
and his message was not forgotten." 

How delightful it is to track the influence of a good 
man, and yet how difficult to estimate its real importance, 
when that good man is a sailor in active life, like our* 
Brother Elliott, and carrying his religion with him around 
the globe. Blessed thought! There is a record of all 
such on high. I have said already that the ministry of 
our brother for Christ in the Mariners' church began in 
1859, and extended to 1876, a period of seventeen years. 
It was my privilege to be associated with him intimately 
all those years, to stand beside him in the hour and article 
of death, and follow him to his last resting-place in Green- 
wood. It was beneath my own roof and almost in my 
own arms that he yielded up his ransomed spirit to God 
who gave it. His last hours were brightened by his 
iour's presence. He was cheerful and prayerful to its 
close. His last conscious utterance, in reply to my ques- 
tion, "Is it well, my brother?" was, " It is well, well, 
well ! " A few hours of unconsciousness, the result of 
paralysis, followed, and his ransomed spirit took its flight, 
uter into the rest that remains to the people of God. 

Serenely he sleeps on the Saviour's breast, 
1 1 is race of lite is run ; 

and olive are his, 
Fur the battle's strife is done. 



WHAT THE LIGHTNING DID. 221 

Angels rejoiced as the bonds of clay- 
That fettered his soul were riven, 

They welcomed him up to the realms of da)? 
He walks with them now, in heaven. 

It would be a pleasure to me, here, to give a record of 
many others whose hearty co-operation lightened my toil 
and cheered my heart Among these, Captain James H. 
Brownlow, Captain John Scott, the faithful and self-sac- 
rificing sexton, Mr. Thos. Halversen, and Mr. Eli Trott — 
who has been for many years an untiring co-laborer with 
Mr. Charles L. Brace and others in the Children's Aid 
Society — all converts of our church, are entitled to ex- 
tended notice ; but space forbids any more than the men- 
tion of their names. 

WHAT THE LIGHTNING DID. 

"God moves in a mysterious way 
His wonders to perform ; 
He plants his footsteps in the sea 

And rides upon the storm. " — Cowper. 

The freaks of electricity are not always to be account- 
ed for, on the basis of recognized law. This is true, 
whether we consider the primary or the secondary results 
of its action. Physically its vagaries are often a contradic- 
tion of all our observations and experience. Yet, if we 
recognize the Divine hand in second causes at all, we 
shall find no difficulty in acknowledging that what is 
inscrutable to us, is only a manifestation of His wisdom, 
who " worketh all things after the counsel of his own 
will/ 1 " He maketh the winds his messengers, and 
his ministers a flame of fire." 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

These n re and ministers work out his great 

her directly or indirectly, in the moral as well 

in the physical realm. It is said that Luther, a man 
ml to none in his peculiar sphere, was deeply 
impressed with the necessity of escaping the terrors of 
the world to come, by the sudden striking of the lightning 
with terrific force, near his feet. He was stunned by the 
ke, and in his terror resolved to take the monastic vows, 
which in his view was the surest w r ay of pleasing God ; 
but which resulted ultimately in his entire abjuration of 
Rome — the prostration of the scholastic theology, and 
the inauguration of the religious Reformation which 
shook the world. If through the operation of physical 
forces, by suggestion or otherwise, God accomplishes 
events of so much importance as the conversion of a 
human soul, thereby originating a series of events, which 
are destined to bless the world, why may not the agent 
be acknowledged, when acting under his divine direction ? 
Do we demgate from the divine efficiency, because we 
recognize the agent through which it acts ? 

These remarks are prefatory to the following interest- 
ing sketch of the conversion of Captain J. H. Hawks, one 
of the noblest of the sons of the sea — one whom God was 
pleased to arrest on the sea by fire from heaven, as he 
arrested Saul of Tarsus, on his way to Damascus, and to 
une beneficicnt end, as the sequel will show. 

In an autobiographical letter to me, he recounts the 
events of his early life, of which I can give only a con- 
densed summary. Beginning life in the busy world of 
London, at the age of eleven, possessing the rudiments 
only of an education, he began to work for his own liv- 
ing. His parents had set before him, both by precept 



PRECOCIOUSLY PROFANE. 223 

and example, the duty and necessity of right conduct ; but 
exposed as he was, he fell into temptation, and gave way 
to corrupting vices. When about sixteen he became 
disgusted with life ashore, and, having obtained his 
mother's permission, entered a school-ship, at Deptford, 
and from her was bound for four years to a Liverpool ship, 
in the American timber trade, running to St. John's, N. B. 
Here he became an adept in the use of profane language, 
vieing with others in the impiety and. blasphemy of 
his expressions — using the sacred name of God and of 
Jesus Christ in the most filthy connections. Years thus 
passed away, going from bad to worse, conscience mean- 
while accusing and excusing, until, he says : 

1 ' I became worse than ever. I cursed bitterly, at the slightest 
provocation ; — so that men, who were themselves hardened in sin, 
told me that they trembled to hear me. I remember, once, while 
in Havana, I lay in my berth meditating. The scenes of my rough 
life from my boyhood, passed before me in review. I was ap- 
palled at the enormity of my guilt; and inwardly exclaimed, ' O, 
father, if you knew what your son had come to, you would never 
own him again ! ' M 

This impression, however, soon wore off, and his for- 
mer course was resumed; until, in 1853, he visited Bath, 
Maine, where a devout Christian woman counselled him 
against the use of strong drink. She was the first who 
seemed really interested in his moral and spiritual welfare. 
Her influence followed him for a short time only. After 
a year he returned to Bath, and became acquainted with 
a young lady of religious character, who subsequently 
became his wife. It was his desire to avoid lowering 
himself in her esteem, and his ambition to rise in his pro- 
fession, that led him to abandon his propensity for taking 



224 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

the name of God in vain. The first he accomplished by a 
compromise, lie left off using the names of the Deity, 
and in the place of them resolved to swear " by thunder 
and lightning." The second he attained to, by shipping 
as second mate of a brig, bound to Baltimore. What 
occurred on that voyage may be best stated in his own 
words : 

r< While on the return passage, on the 18th of August, 1855, 
we were caught off Hatteras, in one of those terrific squalls which 
are so common and destructive in those latitudes. In the excite- 
ment of shortening sail, there was much confusion. The orders 
came thick and fast. — 'Stand by top-gallant halyards/ 'Clew up 
fa tp-gallant sails I' ' Take in the jib [' 'Lower away the topsails !' 
1 Haul up the courses !' &c. I was irritated at the want of cool- 
ness in the captain, and found fault with everything. The reef- 
tackles were not hauled out quick enough for me. I sprang to 
the main topsail reef-tackle, clapped on, over-hand, and began to 
swear by thunder and lightning. Just then — as if the patience 

k)d was exhausted by my folly — a flash of lightning, more 
terrific and blinding than any before it, struck us, the thunder 
pealing in our ears, before the glare of the lightning was off our 
eyes. The reef tackle fall, being wet, served as a conductor for 
the electricity, which affected me so that I fell to the deck like 
lead, apparently lifeless. I was picked up by the men and 
bonie into the cabin. 

range to say, though my physical frame was thoroughly 
paralyze;!, BO that I could not command a muscle, or make a 

. my mental powers were acute. I retained my conscious- 
pcrfcctly, and heard what was said, hut was incapable of 
reply. As I was being carried into the cabin, the mate, looking 
down from the poop, said, ' Poor fellow! he is gone.' These 
1 to my mind the question, ' Where ! If it had 
plea to kill me, where would my poor soul he now?' I 

was truly convicted of my sin. The arrows of the Almighty 



NEVINS'S PRACTICAL THOUGHTS. 225 

were sticking fast in me. In a few minutes I regained the com- 
mand of my muscles, and slowly returned to my normal condi- 
tion. My soul, however, was in deep distress. The mate, who 
was a professor of religion, noting my seriousness, placed books 
and tracts suited to my condition in my way, which I read. 
These, however, only intensified my misery ; for they told of 
the holiness of the Law I had violated. 

" At length we arrived in Boston. I was paid off, and put up 
at the Sailors' Home ; and having no desire to see or be seen by 
any one, I kept myself aloof. In three days I was shipped 
again, bound to Florida, Before sailing I asked for some 
books to read, which were cheerfully given to me. Among 
them was, c Kevins' Practical Thoughts. ' In reading, I became 
deeply impressed on account of my lost condition ; but how to 
obtain pardon I knew not. My soul was burdened. Sin lay 
heavy on me. The writer urged all who had a desire to find 
reconciliation with God, to come to the table of the Lord. In 
words of affection he asks, 4 Whom do you fear ? Are you afraid 
the world will oppose you ? Are you afraid because you are 
such a sinner, and not fit to come ? O then, come. It is just 
such as you the Saviour invites. Do you still hesitate ? Are 
you afraid to trust your own heart, fearing you would be again 
led into sin ? O, trust in Christ ! Balieve that He who died 
to save you, who has sent his Spirit to show you your need of 
himself, will not leave you now. Come — leaning on Him, and 
all will be well/ It was here my soul was released from its 
burden. I felt like one who had been weighed down by a 
heavy load, but had been relieved, and was at ease. I imme- 
diately gave glory to God ; and from that moment felt willing 
to trust in Jesus, and in the merits of his blood for acceptance 
with God. 

On my arrival in Boston, in November, 1855, I was admitted 

to membership in the Mariners' church, on proiession of my 

faith. From that time my whole life was changed. New 

objects presented themselves to me, and I realized the necessity 

10* 



226 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

of trusting in Christ, and living for him. Some three months 
afterwards, I felt it my duty to tell my experience, and to exhort 
Others to seek the light ; and God led me by a way I knew not, 
until 1 arrived in New York, in January, 1856." 

It was here he took up the laboring oar, and began to 
work for Christ, and for the salvation of his shipmates. 
In a letter to me dated February 22nd, 1856, he says : 

f You are aware that it was the sermon you preached on the 
Sabbath of this New Year, together with the exhortations in 
the prayer-meeting in the afternoon, which first induced me to 
1 word for my blessed Saviour in a public meeting. Till 
then I thought it was not required of the younger members of 
the church to speak on such occasions ; but glory be to God, I 
can now realize the necessity of every one improving the talent 
committed to him. The few weeks I have been blessed with 
the privilege of attending your meetings, appear like so many 
led to my experience. I feel so much stronger in faith, 
•11 as practice, every time I make known my Saviour's love to 
so great a sinner as I have been. I am now going forth in the 
1, far away from those, who, by God's overruling Provi- 
dence, have been the means of teaching me how to live most for 
t; but I shall not be alone. My Father has promised 
r to leave or forsake me, and my prayer will be that all my 
:i_ r th may come from him. 

" The books I take with me, are to be used in Divine worship 

00 board. In this matter I feel my own weakness ; but with the 

trance that you will bear me up at the throne of grace, I am 

lent that I shall receive strength and wisdom from on high, 

ak a word in season to some poor soul. I feel that I need 

the prayers of God's people, in order to accomplish the work 1 

have laid out. " 

How fearlessly that work was performed, how zeal- 
ously it was continued, and with what blessed result, the 



THE LAST VOYAGE. 227 

correspondence — extracts from which are here given — 
will in some measure show. 

Two days after reaching Santa Cruz, Teneriffe, he 
writes under date of March 28th, 1S56, asking us to thank 
God for deliverance from peril during the voyage ; and 
describes his efforts to do good, in the distribution of 
tracts, Bibles and Testaments in Spanish among the na- 
tive boatmen, all of which were readily received, with 
thanks. He also relates an incident which illustrates Che 
Scripture recorded in Prov. xxix. i. : M He that is often re- 
proved, and hardeneth his neck, shall be suddenly de- 
stroyed, and that without remedy.'' It is as follows : 

" On the second day out, while running before a northwester, 
the wind shifted suddenly to N. E. , blowing so hard that we were 
compelled to let go even-thing, to save our spars Our topsail 
was torn into ribbons during the squall, and we were twelve days 
without one to set After blowing eight hours with unabated fury, 
it suddenly chopped round to W. S. W., blowinga perfect gale, 
which increased with such rapidity and force that we could no 
longer run before it. Our little craft did nobly, but the sea, 
which had risen with the wind, rolling up on either side and 
leaping in-board, threatened to swamp her. We therefore de- 
termined to heave her to, under the mainsail. While in the act 
of getting her head to the wind, she shipped a heavy sea, which 
started the deck load and washed one of our men overboard. No 
human power could have saved him. 

"You will remember that while in New York, I shipped the 
second mate and one of the men of the ship ' Naples/ the vessel 
which picked up the survivors of the 'St. Denis,' and brought 
them to New York. Knowing this fact, I had used that calamity, 
to awaken in these men a sense of their peril, and induce 
them to seek the salvation of their souls. They only responded 
with promises to do better next voyage. The reproof was lost on 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

i. The man, as I have said, was washed overboard, so 
that ■ next voyage ' never came to him. His death was 'sudden 
and without remedy. ' The scripture is remarkably illustrated in 
this ease, hence I enter into particulars. When he fell overboard, 
it was about 5 p. m. The only canvas we had on her was a fore- 
topmast stay-sail. Knowing that she could not come to the 
wind under that sail alone, I had gone aft to take the gasket off 
mainsail, and while there hauled in a strong fishing-line 
which we habitually kept towing astern, in case any one should 
fall overboard. His destruction was therefore 'without remedy/ 
It was nearly dark. The sea was such that no boat could live 
in it. The line that might have saved him had been hauled in. 
She was under a topmast stay-sail only, and before we could get 
her head to the wind, the man was miles astern. God grant 
that we who witnessed his death, may profit by the warning. I 
have conversed frequently since with the second mate, but I am 
s< >rry t< 1 say that the impression is wearing off. He is as cold as 
lie is resting on the fact of his having been confirmed, in 
youth, as constituting him a Christian and affording him a 
sufficient basis for hope." 

In July, when writing from Havana, he expresses his 
thanks to God for sanctified affliction, having experi- 
enced his love in a remarkable manner in a twelve days' 
sickness, during which he was confined to his bed. 

The second mate of the " Naples " was still with him, 
and still the object of his solicitude. This too was the 
14 next voyage " on which he had promised to reform. 
But, alas ! the reformation came not, although death 
did. In his narrative, he says: 

- I cannot forbear mentioning to you the circumstances of his 
last hours on earth, that you may use them to warn others of the 
folly of putting Off the care for their souls' salvation until it is too 
late. The man We lost < m the voyage before, was waiting for the 
next v< iyage. His next v< lyage was to Eternity. This second mate 



CRY OF DESPAIR. 229 

was promising himself, that he would go home and see his friends, 
and then reform. But he will never again look upon those 
who loved him in life, and who are thousands of miles away. 
He had no kind hand to wipe the death-damp from his brow. 
He has gone to account to God for warnings slighted, oppor- 
tunities neglected, and invitations scorned. He had a foretaste 
of the punishment reserved for all who neglect their souls — even 
before he died. He had lost all hope, and had ( a certain fear- 
ful looking for of judgment to come/ The day before he died, 
though laving some distance from him, two stone walls separat- 
ing us, I heard distinctly his cry of despair. All his cry was, ' O, 
I shall die ! I shall die ! what will become of me ?' I was near 
him, but too weak to go to him, and point him, as I had done 
before, to the Saviour whom he had so often despised. He died 
therefore in his sins. No one was nigh to direct his soul, nor 
point him to the blood he had trampled under his feet, His 
death, too, was ' sudden and without remedy/" 

He relates the case of still one other seaman, in the 
same letter, who boarded in the house with the survivors 
of the St Denis. 

"He had seen his shipmates snatched away from his side, 
heard all the harrowing details of the loss of that fatal ship, and 
still remained hardened up to the last moment. He was taken 
sick. I had a few moments in private with him before he was 
carried to the hospital, and urged him to cast his soul on Christ. 
I called to his mind the many slights he had cast upon God, 
and told him the fearful consequences of sin unrepented of, and 
uncleansed by the blood of Christ. He appeared affected, and 
promised to seek the Saviour he had slighted so long. I saw 
him once after that. He gave no evidence of a change of heart. 
He lingered on for a week, and he too was called away. I tell 
these things because it eases my mind to talk with one who 
can sympathise with me. I have not nr;t one since we left, who 
could converse with me on the love of Christ for poor sinners/' 



230 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

The i ndence of this dear brother was continu- 

ed from voyage to voyage, narrating with great faithful- 
die incidents of his spiritual life, his temptations, his 
afflictions, his enjoyments, his sorrows, his efforts for 
Christ, and his partial successes, as well as his real con- 
quest ot" souls. 1 marked with great pleasure his gradual 
but permanent growth in grace, his advance socially, his 
marriage, and domestic felicity; the development of his 
affection for his wife and children, his progress from the 
position of second mate to that of master, his faithfulness 
to the souls under his charge and his care for their bodily 
comfort and safety through all the years from February, 
1S56, to the spring of 1862, at which time he resolved 
to abandon the sea entirely, intending to obtain employ- 
ment on shore, in order that he might not be separated 
from the loved ones in his Eastern home. 

During all the changes of these years he scrupulously 
commemorated and prayerfully observed the anniversaries 
of his spiritual union with Christ and his church, which, 
in his own words, called forth all his gratitude to God for 
the gift to him of an all-sufficient Saviour. He expresses 
in one of his communications a yearning for the anniver- 
of the day "on which God visited me with his light- 
ning, and showed me the folly of leaning on self." 

He was never happier than when he had evidence of 
the safety of the souls committed to his care. Hearts 
which he failed to move, he would follow with continued 
prayer, and lovingly commend them to the servants of 
God, among whom he expected their lot to fall. 

conferred was one of his marked 
characteristics. This extended to God first, and then to 
the human agencies by which he was affected. In a 



WORSHIP AT SEA. 23 1 

letter to me, referring to a painful event in his ex- 
perience, he said: 

c< Had I Jiever known you, I should probably have been 
mourning for the love of Christ, which in a moment of passion I 
had forfeited by my own folly. You were the good Samaritan 
who dressed my wounds and led me to the Great Physician of 
souls. " 

In the intervals of his voyages, when for a few weeks 
he remained on shore, he was always found earnestly en- 
gaged in establishing prayer-meetings and Sabbath- 
schools, where they existed not, and in fanning the em- 
bers of Christian zeal into a flame, wherever he found 
them in an expiring condition. Another feature of this 
good brother's character was his deep and abiding sense 
of his own unworthiness. He says : 

" God saw fit in his mercy to 'pluck me as a brand from the 
burning/ I am lost in amazement in looking at my past life, 
to think how I could sink so low, and then be reclaimed. But 
when I look away from myself to my Saviour, who is able to save 
to the uttermost, I no longer wonder that ' He who spared not 
his own Son, but gave him up for us all, should with him freely 
give us all things. ' " 

In September, 1858, he was placed in command of the 
barque "Flight," of New York. In a letter to me an- 
nouncing the fact, he says : 

" I trust that I have duly acknowledged the hand from which 
I have received this trust. I propose therefore to show my grati- 
tude to him by my devotion to his cause, to fulfil my vows, 
many times made to God, to work in his vineyard as opportu- 
nity offered. The time has now come. I have no one to cramp 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

my influence, I feel my own weakness, however ; yet I go forth 

He, trusting to that God who has kept me hitherto." 

11 There are many praying hearts interested in my welfare, but 
illy entreat you, my brother, and your congregation, to 
hold me up in the arms of your faith and love. I feel that I 
owe my advancement in the Christian life, under God, to your 
influence. 1 have often blessed God for guiding me where you 
were stationed. Since then I have enjoyed many precious com- 
munications from you ; and I thank my God, I may address 
you as a brother indeed." 

This vessel became to him a sanctuary, and was conse- 
crated by prayer. Three times a week his men were called 
to prayers. No cursing was heard, no improper usage 
allowed. She made quick passages, and good business 
for her owners. The crew saw that it was possible to 
work a vessel without brutality, and the officers, that 
mild treatment was the best. Again he wrote me from 
Charleston, S. C, under date of November 30th, 1859: 

" On leaving New York, I felt under a weight of responsibility 
to God and to my fellow-men. With that feeling stronger in 
me than ever I felt it before, I began to work for the Lord in 
After crossing the bar, I called my crew aft, and 
them that as the Providence of God had thrown us together, 
it was our duty to seek each other's good. I therefore laid 
down my own plan. I would give them watch and watch, and 
allow them Saturday afternoon to wash and mend their clothes, a 
plan I never had pursued before. I proposed also to have 
family worship every evening, and a prayer-meeting Tuesdays, 
Tim: 1 on the Sabbath. All agreed to this arrangement, 

with a wonderful unanimity. We commenced that evening, 
commending ourselves to God, and imploring the aid of the 
divine Spirit in all our exercises ; and truly God has been with 



PRAYERS IN THE FORECASTLE. 233 

us. Before we had been out a week, there was such a deep in- 
terest felt by all on board, that I proposed a prayer-meeting 
even- night. The result was that though we had been but seven 
days on the passage, we came in with one soul rejoicing in the 
pardon of his sins, and two deeply convicted, and earnestly in- 
quiring what they must do to be saved ? I have reason to praise 

God for sending Brother E with me. His whole soul is 

bound up in the conversion of our men. 

"On reaching this place, we found that Rev. Mr. Yates was 
absent ; and as a consequence there was but one meeting a week 
in the Bethel. This was not enough for my crew. I thought 
therefore it would be well to establish meetings on board our own 
barque, and invite the officers and crews of other vessels to join 
us. While I write, the Bethel flag waves over my head. Like 
the Star which guided the wise men of the East, this blue flag 
will lead where Christ may be found. I cannot describe my 
feelings. I am unworthy of the honor of holding these meetings ; 
but the love of Christ constrains me, and I look to him for grace 
to direct, as I have only the glory of his name in view. I feel 
that he will not leave me alone. O brother, pray for us ; I want 
to have both my mates converted. What God has begun he 
will finish. Hoping soon to see you, I am yours in Christ. 

"J. H. H." 

This narrative would scarcely be complete without the 
following testimony from one of the men who sailed with 
our brother before the mast ; who, having been converted 
at 5ea, through his influence, writes from Charleston, 
S. C, under date of Nov. 30th, 1859 : 

" Mr. Jones : Dear Sir — I write to tell you that another one 
has been added to the flock of the Good Shepherd since the 
barque ' Flight ' sailed. I shall long remember this vessel, 
and her good captain, J. H. Hawks. 

"When we left New York, I felt as if I must yield to the 
Holy Spirit, who had been drawing me gently toward himself for 



234 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

is S K)n as we got clear of the land, the captain 

i the cabin. We also began meetings 

among ourselves in the forecastle ; and it was out at sea, at one 

oft; ces, that I was forced by divine grace to surrender 

myself to him who revealed to me my own sad condition. The 

knowledge ^C my lost estate, brought me to my knees, at the 

rosSi There I plead for mercy, and I thank God 

I found it. Praise to his holy name ! While we have been 

in port, here, we have had nightly meetings on board, which 

have been well attended by the officers and crews of other vessel. 

Our good captain conducts the services. The Bethel flag floats 

at the main, and there is scarcely a ship in port that does not 

m to take an interest. O, if all the captains would only 

a his example, what a difference there would be among the 

nun of the sea ! I thank you too, sir, for the good advice you 

gave me, and I thank all those who have prayed for me. I ask 

a continued interest in your supplications. I desire to be 

among the foremost in the good fight, and to stand true to the 

last Faithfully your servant, Charles VanhoustEx\. " 

The evidence of Captain Hawks' faithfulness is seen in 
the fact that he retained command of the 'Flight' for 
three years. In the winter of 1 86 1, he determined 
to remain permanently ashore. The owners were un- 
willing to part with him, but he purposed to retire for 
good. His last letter to me was dated at Bath, Maine, 
December 3 1st, 1 86 1. He was then in the enjoyment 
icli happiness as he had long been deprived of. He 
w rites as follows : 

"Rev. C. J. JONES and Lady: Esteemed Frimds — Once more 

lam at home While I write, wife and little ones are by my 

the Lord has been good to me. As the 

lew with gratitude the many blessings 

I have enjoyed. Yet how have I murmured at the Providence 



THE MISSING BARK. 235 

which kept me away from the loved ones ! By my fretfulness and 
impatience I brought unhappiness to my own heart, and sinned 
against Him who was constantly caring for me, and ordering all 
things for my good. How deeply I must have grieved Him ! 
It is of his mercy that 1 am not consumed, yet has he blessed 
me, and this New Year's eve finds me in the enjoyment of such 
happiness as I have not felt since my first espousals to the Lord 
Jesus. My heart is full of joy — joy subdued, however, by a 
sense of my own unworthiness, and the need of continued 
strength from him to sustain me. 

1 ' I am happy to say that my family is quite well. We have 
a pretty group : the little one grows very fast and promises to be 
a handsome girl." 

While luxuriating in this delightful condition of tilings, 
and shortly after this letter was written, these dea/ ones 
were separated forever. The barque ' Flight' had been 
refitted, and had taken in a cargo of petroleum for Liv- 
erpool, but for some reason was without a captain. The 
owner, Captain Thomas Dunham, therefore, wrote to 
Captain Hawks, urging him to come to New York and 
take charge of her, for this voyage only, to oblige him in 
the emergency. This appeal to his benevolent nature 
prevailed ; and notwithstanding his purpose and promise 
not to leave his wife and children again, he consented, 
came on to New York, and at our own table, where he 
was always welcome, and at home, he told us the reason 
of his sudden change of purpose. In a few days after this, 
the ■ Flight ' sailed with her cargo, and living freight, to 
return no more. Subsequent inquiries from time to time 
failed to throw any light on either her history or her fate. 
Whether she went down at sea by collision, or was struck 
by lightning, or blown into ten thousand atoms by an 



2}G FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

losion of her volatile cargo, we shall in all probability 
never know till the sea gives up the myriad secrets which 
arc buried in her mysterious depths. 



CHAPTER XL 

SIGNS OF THE TIMES — CHILIAN CONVERT. 

Signs of the times — Precious revival — Noon prayer-meeting — On the tidal 
wave — Visit men-of-war— Benevolent operations— Education not lost — 
>r excessive — Edit " Sea-bird '' — New boarding-house — Conversions 
at sea A word in season — Blessed harvest-time — Summary of labors — 
1 A little child shall lead them" — Do you love God? — Wrestling in 
prayer— Happy change — Received into the church — Lost at sea — The 
Chilian convert— Voyage to the United States— The priest's admoni- 
tion Virgin and saints abandoned — Causes of the decision — Unites with 
the Mariners' church — Christian usefulness — Return to Chili — Bible col- 
portage —Efforts f >r souls — Death-bed scenes — Happy release — An Irish 
sailor boy — Honorary titles — Reads twenty-three languages — Tells his 
own story. 

Ix many respects 1857 was a very remarkable year. 

home, the brutal and bloody scenes enacted in Kansas, 

under the presiding genius of Calhoun, and preceding her 

admission into the sisterhood of States, kept the whole 

country in commotion. In Nicaragua the filibustering 

Expedition of Walker, until his arrest by Captain Paul- 

, of the U. S. Steamer Saratoga, involved that 

country in continual agitation. This, together with the 

iniquitous decision of Chief-Justice Taney, in the Dred 

tt case, that " the negro, being far inferior to the white 

race, had no rights which the white man was bound to 



PRECIOUS REVIVAL. 237 

respect/' made America a stench in the nostrils of the old 
world. Abroad, the Sepoy rebellion in India, the horrible 
massacre of missionaries at Delhi, Lucknow and Cawnpore, 
and the novel mode of executing rebels by blowing them 
into pieces from the mouths of cannon, had much to do, 
in the eyes of the world, toward lowering the estimate 
placed on British morality and British rule. 

But that one feature which in our own land dwarfed all 
others in point of interest and importance, was the pre- 
cious revival of religion, which seemed to spring, in a cer- 
tain sense, out of the great financial crisis in which — fol- 
lowing the failure of the Ohio Life and Trust Company of 
NewYork, and the alarming Schuyler frauds, so many long 
established business firms went down like a house of cards. 
The crisis did not produce the revival, it is true ; but in 
the Providence of God, it seemed to have been the occasion 
of it. For, as it unsettled values, overturned financial 
schemes, and brought general ruin into the mercantile 
world, business men, finding the ground giving way 
under their feet, were led, like the despairing seamen, on 
a foundering craft in mid-ocean, to look for some means 
of safety outside of themselves. They were driven, there- 
fore, as sailors by stress of weather, to seek a safe anchor- 
age in the Word and promises of God. Out of this con- 
dition of things, and as an evidence of it, grew the " Bus- 
iness Men's noon-day prayer-meeting " of Fulton street. 
Many similar meetings, in different cities, were born of 
the exigencies of the times. These continue to live, and 
to give daily evidence of the truth of the words of scrip- 
ture : u When thy judgments, O Lord, are in the earth, 
the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness/' 

It was the blessed privilege of the Mariners' church to 



238 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

be riding the very crest of that tidal wave, as it rolled on 
r the city, and over the land. And her children were 
among the very first to carry its benign influence abroad 
on the sea, and into other lands. This blessed year was 
not only full of evidences of the Divine presence among 
US, but was also pregnant with germs of the future har- 
vest. As the old year closed, so the new began. Our 
church was filled with w r aiting souls, densely packed. 
Floors and galleries, aisles and pulpit platform, every 
inch of space was occupied. Fully one-fourth of the 
people, often, were in tears. The increase had been 
stead\', and the devotion hearty, ^od's dear children 
among us, alive to their own eternal interests, and zeal- 
ous for' his glory, were eager to have others rejoice with 
them in their privileges, and share with them in the 
labors and rewards of the Christian life. Self-denying 
energies were put forth on every hand, to secure the sal- 
vation of souls. Who could do die most ar*d best, seemed 
to be the dominant rule. 

At the close of 1856, special efforts were put forth 
for the evangelization of the United States Navy. 
I visited the U. S. ships North Carolina.,. -Sabine, 
Minnesota, Decatur, Mississippi, and other vessels 
of war, as opportunity offered ; religious readiry matter 
was scattered liberally among the men, followed by ptayer 
and accompanied by earnest exhortation to seek fiietr 
ition. With the commencement of the year, there- 
fore, demands for pastoral labor had largely increased, 
and plans were devised to meet them. I gave myself to 
the study of the Spanish, that I might be enabled to 
converse and correspond with sailors in that language, 



BENEVOLENT OPERATIONS. 239 

as I already did with the parents and friends of seamen 
in French. 

A daily morning prayer-meeting was commenced in 
the church in January. Our meetings during this year 
were held every day in the week, morning, noon and 
night, so that we had twenty-one services in the church 
building every week, exclusive of Dorcas and sewing 
societies, relief committees for the poor, and other benev- 
olent operations. I administered on the estates of dead 
sailors, and sent the proceeds to their relations ; became 
guardian for orphan children, and provided for the educa- 
tion of seamen and others, who desired to study for the 
ministry. This was an occasional matter, it is true, yet 
the occasion was not infrequent. As a result of my min- 
istry, under God, twenty-one persons entered upon a 
course of study to that end, eleven of whom were sailors. 
Nine of these were brought to Christ under my ministry. 
Of the twenty-one, eight only reached the goal, for the 
reason that the breaking out of the civil war deflected 
some from their course. Six are now in the ministry. 
Four are Presbyterians, one a Congregationalist and one 
a Baptist, all actively and earnestly preaching the Gos- 
pel at this date, January, 1884., To some of these I may 
refer hereafter. One died after reaching the office of 
deacon, in the Episcopal Church. Another, after several 
years in the ministry, died recently, while professor of 
Greek in Antioch College. 

It is not to be inferred that the education of those who 
failed to reach the ministry, was by any means lost; for 
those who are still living, occupy positions of usefulness 
and trust, and are maintaining their Christian integrity 
to-day. One is a lawyer and professor of languages. 



24U FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

Chic is the captain of a steamship, doing his Master's work 
in Japan ; one is a lawyer and financier in Washington ; 
one is a merchant, doing yeoman's service in the cause of 
education in New Caledonia ; another is in Manitoba, 
engaged in the instruction of youth for more than twenty 
rs. 

The financial depression of this year bore heavily on 
those whose protectors were absent, and made large de- 
mands on both hand and heart. During the fall and win- 
ter months my labors were more than usually excessive. 
I was called upon to care for the wives and children and 
widowed mothers of seamen, and assisted by the benev- 
olence of others, in many instances, paid their rent, buried 
their dead, and provided food and fuel for them in their 
destitution. I sent sick sailors to their homes, procured 
permits for others to enter hospitals, and the "Snug" Har- 
bor;" supplied shipwrecked men with clothing; became 
onsible for their board until they could ship, and 
frequently paid it for them. Also took measures for the 
protection of sailors who were brutally treated and per- 
secuted on board their ships, visited the Tombs and jails 
where seamen for any cause were confined, obtained coun- 
sel for them, and labored, not without success, for the 
conversion of their souls; so that some came forth from 
prison walls to lives of usefulness on the sea. I wrote for 
the press with a view of correcting some of the abuses 
which were encountered at sea, and advocated the abol- 
ishment of advance wages. 

In .April, I established, under the auspices of the 
Mariners' Family Industrial Society, a monthly paper 
called the "Sea Bird/ 1 and edited it for six months gra- 
tuitously. Under the same female direction I assisted in 



NEW BOARDING-HOUSE. 24 1 

organizing and furnishing the Mariners' House, a temper- 
ance and religious boarding-house at No. 193 Cherry 
Street, which was opened in May. A weekly prayer- 
meeting was commenced in the August following, in the 
reading-room, through which souls were awakened and 
converted. During all this year the social meeting was 
kept up with increasing interest and numbers. At every 
communion season, on the first Sabbath of the month, we 
received new members to the church. No single admin- 
istration of the ordinance passed without the admission 
of from three to twenty-one into covenant with the Lord. 
The whole number received during the year was one 
hundred and nine, an average of over nine a month. 
Ninety-eight of these were admitted on a confession of 
their faith in Christ; eleven only, by certificate. Of 
these a large proportion were sailors. Many more were 
converted at sea, who communicated the fact of their 
joyful change by letter. A large number doubtless were 
brought to Christ, of whose redemption we shall hear for 
the first time when we stand before the great White 
Throne. It is our comfort that "the Lord knoweth them 
that are his." 

In June a young sailor, George Hadley, visited my 
office. The truth presented to him there, reached his 
heart. He signed the pledge and became a steady at- 
tendant upon the Sabbath and weekly services. In a 
few days he was bowed down with grief on account of 
his sins ; he felt the danger of his soul, and before sailing 
in the "Cordelia," gave clear evidence of having passed 
from death to life. In Port au Prince he was taken ill 
with yellow fever, and in a few days was called to his 
heavenly home. His shipmates brought the news of his 
11 



242 FIFTY YEARS 

happy death, and his request that 1 would write and in- 
form his mother. They spoke of him as a devoted man, 
and as leading a life that left no doubt in their minds of 
liis future companionship with his Saviour above. Ano- 
ther instance, illustrating Prov. xv. 23 : "A word spoken 
in due season, how good is it!" occurred thus. I had 
been visiting among my people in company with Brother 
Helland, and returning home, three Scandinavian sailors 
crossed our path. I said to him, " There are three of 
your countrymen ; run, give them a card, and invite them 
to church." 

He did so, and that night all three were at the Nor- 
wegian prayer-meeting. One was convicted of sin, and 
asked what he should do to be saved ? He was pointed 
to Christ as the sinner's friend, found peace at the Cross, 
and after a few days of faithful instruction, went to sea re- 
joicing in the love of God. Off Sandy Hook, after the 
pilot had left the ship, he was sent aloft, fell from the top- 
sail yard overboard, and was drowned. That simple in- 
vitation was doubtless blessed of God to the shaping of 
his eternal destiny for good. What became of the other 
, we did not learn. But to him it was evidently a 
word at the proper time. How good it was to him 
eternity alone will tell. 

The month of December, 1857, will be ever memor- 
able in the history of many who were brought into the 
Mariners' church, as the period of their birth unto right- 
It will be remembered by many as a blessed 
harvest time, prolific of heavenly fruit. The seed, sown 
in bumble dependence on the Divine spirit and blessing, 
watered with tears and nourished by continued prayer, 
sprung up in our very presence, " first the blade, then the 



SUMMARY OF LABORS. 243 

ear, then the full corn in the ear." Our hearts were 
thrilled with the pleasure of success. One hundred and 
thirty-nine, during this month alone, called upon me in 
the study, on the all-important matter of salvation. I 
gave personally to seamen during this year, and in ad- 
dition to those distributed by the missionaries, one 
hundred and seven Bibles and ninety-seven Testaments, 
in English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, German, and 
Welsh. Nine hundred and sixty visits were received 
from seamen in my study, exclusive of hundreds at my 
house. These gave me an abundant opportunity to urge 
home upon them the duty and privilege of faithfulness 
to Christ. Five hundred aud fifty-eight of these were 
Temperance men ; eighty-nine others signed the pledge 
to abstain. With five hundred and twenty-nine I had 
special and private religious conversation. With two 
hundred and eighty-eight I bowed in prayer. One 
hundred and forty-five of these were seriously seeking 
the salvation of their souls. I gave to men going to sea, 
five hundred and two packages of assorted tracts and 
other religious reading matter, together with nearly seven 
hundred bound volumes on important topics bearing on 
the moralities of life. I wrote four hundred and thirty- 
eight letters, made two hundred and fifteen pastoral visits 
to families, boarding-houses, and hospitals. In more than 
one hundred and fifty of these I bowed in prayer with the 
persons visited, engaged in religious conversation, and 
left appropriate reading. During the last eight months 
two thousand six hundred and twenty-six were induced 
by our young men to attend the services of the sanctuary, 
who otherwise might never have heard the word preach- 
ed. This is a rapid resume — the details would fill volumes. 



24-I V VEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

•• A 1 [TTLE CHILD SHALL LEAD THEM." 
These words oi Holy Writ are for all time. They find 
their illustrations in all ages, because the principles 
which underlie them arc adapted to men in the relations 
which the}' sustain to God and each other. Especially 
are they true of the Divine influences operative under the 
Gospel dispensation. They are commonly regarded as 
descriptive of the change wrought by Christianity in 
wicked men. I use them here because they find a 
remarkable fulfilment in the story of a Scotch lad, who 
was brought to the feet of Jesus through the questioning 
of a child. 

Thomas Wilson was born in Edinburgh, in the year 
1838. His parents were members of the Presbyterian 
Church. His father was a surgeon in the British army; 
his mother a French woman — they died when he was 
about ten years of age. While his parents lived he was 
religiously educated ; at their death, an uncle sent him to 
a boarding-school, from which a spirit of adventure in- 
duced him to depart, and try the perils of the sea. At 
the age of sixteen he bound himself apprentice to an 
Australian packet. The first three years he was careless 
of good, and the interests of his soul were wholly lost 
sight of. It was in this condition of things that he came 
"."ndcr my notiee. Finding him in our church, to which 
he had been invited, I took him to my home, inquired 
into his history, and as he was an orphan, and in a sense 
adrift in the world, I introduced him to my family, and 
he became a frequent visitor. He enjoyed playing with 
the children, and made himself generally agreeable. 

On one of these visits, my eldest child, a boy, about 
five years old, who had become deeply interested, even 



DO YOU LOVE GOD ? 245 

at that early age, in his own soul's safety, and who was 
often present with me in my study, and heard my con- 
versations with the seamen, looked affectionately in his 
face, and asked him, u Tom, do you love God ? " That 
simple question from the lips of a babe almost, led him 
to consider his ways. That artless inquiry was the arrow 
that pierced his soul, and awoke him from his slumber of 
death. He burst into tears, as he told me afterwards, 
and left the house to hide his emotion from the children. 
When he entered his boarding-house, his companions 
were playing cards. He passed by them to his own 
room, closed his door, and began to read his Bible, and 
pray for the pardon of his sins. He was in great agony 
of soul nearly all night, wrestling in prayer, and drinking 
in instructions from the Divine Word. There and then, 
he consecrated himself to God's service before he slept. 
After that he never joined his former companions in their 
follies and amusements. He said to me, " A chill comes 
over me now, when I hear men swear and take the name 
of God in vain." 

From that day, until he sailed in the ' Star of Hope,' 
he was a regular attendant on the means of grace. The 
captain and one of the sailors were Christians. The 
sailor (Smith), was a bright Christian lad, and became 
closely attached to our young brother. When in port, 
they spent their Sabbaths on shore, in tract distribution, 
and other efforts to do good. After an absence of fifteen 
months, Tom returned safely to us, the fire of Divine love 
still burning in his heart. He stated that he and his 
friend found great comfort in prayer and religious con- 
versation in their night watches at sea. The result of 
their faithfulness was, that two of the crew were pricked 



240 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

in their hearts, but not sufficiently decided to confess 
Christ before their shipmates. There were others to 
whom their example came with a different effect, for some 
of them spitefully threw Smith's Bible overboard. 

In Monte Video these two friends separated — Smith 
leaving the ' Star of Hope/ to join another vessel, but 
both retaining the true missionary spirit. Before their 
separation they divided their stock of religious books 
and tracts, equally ; and having exhorted each other to 
watchfulness and prayer, for each other and for the 
church in New York, they parted, each to go his own 
way, and labor for Chnst. On his return, Wilson united 
with our church. Shortly after this event, he shipped for 
Havre, was discharged there, and shipped for Cardiff, 
where he was to load coal for New York. The vessel 
sailed, but has never since been heard of. Letters 
of inquiry from friends in Scotknd, whom he had refer- 
red to me for information concerning himself, convince 
me that he sleeps in the great waters ; but where, we shall 
never know r , until the sea gives up its dead. I have no 
doubt, however, that Tom, who loved God so dearly, 
has found a home in heaven, where there is " no more 
sea." 

THE CHILIAN CONVERT, 

On the 5th of January, a fatherless boy arrived from 
Chili, and was received into our family, to be treated as our 
own son. His father, my wife's brother, had recently died, 
while on a visit to England, and left his widow with a 
family of eight children in Santiago. 

Learning of her sore bereavement, wife and I proposed 
to take the youngest girl, who was named for her; 






A PROSELYTE FROM ROME. 247 

but as she was in failing health, our sister-in-law sent in 
her place, her youngest son, Guillermo, who was anx- 
ious to visit the United States. We received notice of 
his sailing, and when the vessel arrived, I went to Boston 
to bring him home. Judge of my surprise, however, 
when instead of a child, I found him a fine-looking, well- 
favored youth of sixteen. He was tall of his age, and 
spoke English quite creditably. 

Knowing that he had been reared in the very hot-bed 
of Romanism, and that he had been early set apart for 
the priesthood, we decided not to interfere with his re- 
ligious convictions, by referring to his creed, or by invi- 
tation to attend our services, preferring that he should be 
influenced rather by our lives, than by any efforts at pros- 
elytism on our part. We felt that the contrast between 
our home and his own would be the most convincing ar- 
gument for our protestantism. We very soon learned 
that the Lord had been before us in the matter ; that he 
had heard our prayers, and had already led him to cast 
loose from the dogmas of Rome without our instrumen- 
tality. In view of our pre-arranged plan, not to prose- 
lyte, when evening came and we were ready to go to the 
prayer-meeting, Mrs. Jones said to him, "William, we 
are going out for an hour to prayer-meeting ; you will 
excuse us. You can sit here till we return, or, if you 
please, as you are probably tired after your sea voyage, 
you can retire to your room." 

I came in at that moment, and added, " Make yourself 
perfectly at ease. You are at home. My library is at 
your service, if you wish to read." To our great satis- 
faction and surprise, however, he replied, " I prefer to go 
with you." He therefore accompanied us to the meeting, 



248 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

was very attentive, seemed interested in the services, 
and kneeled down, apparently in deep devotion during 
the time of prayer On our way home, my wife asked 
him if he had ever been in a protestant church before? 
I le replied lie had not. She then said, " What do you 
suppose the priest would say if he knew what you had 
done?" He responded, " I do not care for the priest or 
his opinion now. The priests in my country are too fond 
of money. I do not like them." We inquired, "How 
long is it since you began to have these thoughts?" He 
said, " Only since I came on board an American vessel." 
He then in substance told us this story : 

11 Before I left Chili, I saw the priest. He hung a scapular 

about my neck, and strictly charged me not to read a protestant 

■k, especially the Bible, and forbade my entering any of their 

churches. I went on board the ship, fully determined to die 

tier than disobey the commands of my spiritual master. On 

the passage I felt very sad and lonely, having no way of passing 

the time, that hung heavy on my hands. I was fond of reading, 

•ver, and felt glad, when one day the steward asked me if 

I would like to read a very nice book, which he would lend me. 

I thanked him, received the book, and read it eagerly. Hav- 
ing finished it, I returned it, and received another, a series of 

niphical essays, recounting the lives of good men and wom- 
en. I began to think that they were very good people. I won- 
1 how they became so good. Could it be the Bible which 
1 to reverence and love ? I wis anxious to read the 
book that bore such fruit. The steward supplied me with a 
y. which I read. The result was — that while reading God's 

II >ly \V.»rd my eyes were opened I cast oil my false religion, 

icapular and beads, and prayed no more to 
the Viigin an 1 the saints. And now I pray to God only, and 1 
know that I am in the right way." 



THE PRIEST'S ADMONITION. 249 

I need not say that his account of the change, gave us 
great joy, and filled our souls with gratitude to God. 
We had been wondering how we could reach his soul to 
release it from the bondage of death in which we knew 
him to be held; and trembling lest his influence over our 
children should be injurious to their young hearts ; and 
lo! the Lord had " rolled away the stone," and relieved us 
of our fears. His darkness had been turned to day, his 
soul had been freed from the fetters of superstition and 
bigotry of his native land, and all this, too, through the 
faithful and prayerful effort of a converted sailor who had 
but a little before been brought to the Saviour's feet him- 
self. 

A few days after William arrived, the steward, Renkcn, 
who had been the instrument in the hands of God of 
opening his eyes to the light, came to the house, to in- 
quire after his spiritual welfare. From him we learned 
something of the process through which he had passed. 
He stated : 

" I noticed William was looking quite sad, and was very lonely. 
Knowing that he was leaving his home behind him, I felt sympa- 
thy for him, and as he seemed to be fond of reading, I offered 
him some of my good books to read. He appeared interested in 
and grateful for them. He evidently thought of what he had read, 
because he asked me many questions about the persons whose 
biography he had read. I saw that the leaven was working, and 
made him the subject of many prayers I entreated the Holy 
Spirit to enlighten his dark heart. I watched him daily, and saw 
that he became more and more interested, and his inquiries 
were more frequent. One day I said to him, ' I have a book which, 
if you will read it, will answer all your questions/ I then hand- 
ed him the Bible. He started back as if it had been a serpent. 
1 No! ' he exclaimed, with vehemence, ' I will not touch that 
11* 



250 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

book ! The priest told me that it was a bad book, and that I 
must never touch it. I will read any other book but that f I 
to him, ' I am sorry, because it is the best of books, and 
the reading of it is able to make you wise unto salvation." 

" A few mornings after, he came to me, and asked me to let 
him see my Bible. Fie said, 'I wish to read it for myself — be- 
cause I cannot understand how, if it is a bad book, as the priests 
it is, the reading of it could make so many people good. 
How is it, that they lived so purely, and died so happily as the 
result of reading it? I cannot think it bad/ I handed him the 
WonL His mind seemed to be very much exercised. He often 
talked with me about it, in a way which convinced me that the 
scales of error were falling from his eyes. 

" One morning, he came on deck, and approaching me, his 
face all aglow with apparent gladness, he said, ' See ! here 
they go !' Suiting the action to the word, he hurled his beads and 
scapular as far as he could from the ship, into the sea, saying, as 
he did so, l there go all my prayers to the Virgin and the saints ; 
I pray to them no more. The Lord Jesus alone shall have all 
my heart's devotions, my adoration, and my love/ I feel sure 
that he is converted, and pray that he may become a burning 
iiining light. " 

That sailor's prayer was most fully answered, as the 
sequel will show. We were pleased to hear this account 
from the lips of this poor uneducated sailor, who by a 
Strange coincidence, was a member of our congregation, 
and with his wife afterwards became members of our 
church. 

Just four weeks from his landing on our shores, 
William became a member of the Mariners' church, on a 
confession of his faith in Christ. He also joined the 
Bib". became a member of the Young Men's Chris- 

tian Association of the church, joined the band of young 



RETURN TO CHILL 25 I 

men who went out into the streets and lanes, and along the 
wharves, and visited the boarding-houses to invite sea- 
men to the house of God. Poor fellow ! he had a hard 
struggle. Naturally possessed of a fiery temper and a 
spirit as proud as any hidalgo, he often gave us trouble and 
sorrow, often misunderstood our motives, and acted rashly 
under the impulse of pride and anger. But his better 
judgment prevailing, he came and apologized, and en- 
deavored to curb himself in the future. 

After he had been with us about four years, he had a 
longing for his home, and expressed a desire to return and 
teach the people what he knew of the Saviour and of the 
Bible. A passage was procured for him in a ship bound 
from New York to Valparaiso, and in December, 1861, 
he sailed for Chili. He was well supplied with copies of 
the New Testament in Spanish, and with other good books 
and tracts. He met with but little sympathy from his 
mother and family, who having learned that he had 
abandoned Rome, cared little for him. On reaching 
Santiago, he became interested and engaged in the dis- 
tribution of the Sacred Scriptures. He opened a store 
for the sale of Bibles and other good books, and had a class 
of boys to whom he taught the English language. His 
labors were ardent and self-denying and not without evi- 
dence of good accomplished. In his correspondence he 
evinced a strong affection for the young men who had 
been his companions in the church, and mentioned many 
of them by name. We had long letters from him from 
time to time, telling us of the work in which he was en- 
gaged for the Lord, of his encouragement and discourage- 
ments ; in all of which he longed for the freedom of the 
land he had left. The contrasts between missionary 



25* TIFTV YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

\\ rk in the United States and in South America were 
very great In a letter to us, he says: 

• 1 am studying hard to master the Spanish and English gram- 
mar and arithmetic When I have accomplished this I intend by 
( Sod's help, to return to the United States — the land of the Bible, 
the land of Christian liberty and privileges. I remember those 
privileges with joy, and thirst for them now, as the hart pants for 
the sparkling brook in the scorching deserts. Do you think it 
would be possible for me to get a position as a translator in the 
Bible or Tract House ? " 

"The return he anticipated and longed for, however, 
never came to him. While pursuing his studies and do- 
ing his Master's work, he married a Chilian lady and gave 
up his projected journey to the United States. 

Providence seemed to demand his continued efforts for 
souls in Chili. But the time was drawing nigh for him, 
when the conflict with illiberality, bigotry and priestcraft, 
and with sin in all its forms, was to cease forever ; and 
his soul find the consummation of that rest into which 
he so happily entered in his union with Christ and his peo- 
ple in that auspicious year of the Lord, 1858. Fifteen 
years of a noble Christian life had been enjoyed, fifteen 
years of labor for the Master; and now the young soldier 
1 lay aside the habiliments of his warfare and receive 
the conqueror's crown. 

Early in the year 1874, a letter was received from a 
friend of the family in Santiago, giving us an account of 
most triumphant departure. 

ith — that cannot so be called which summons the 
soul before the divine Majesty, to be ushered into life 
eternal. It said, after stating that his illness was brief, 
culminating in heart disease : 



DEATH-BED SCENES. 253 

" You will be glad, I am sure, to know that your nephew 
died a most happy death, the death of a true Christian. Through 
all his sickness he was cheerful, and spoke to those around him 
beautiful words of hope and joy, telling them that he was resign- 
ed, and felt prepared to depart, trusting only in his Saviour, 
through whom, and by whom alone he knew that he would enter 
into peace. He was conscious to the last. He called to re- 
membrance the religious teachings he had received among the 
people of God in New York, and requested his sister to tender to 
you and Mrs. Jones his last farewell. Also to tell you that the 
hymn, 

1 There is a happy land 
Far, far away ' — 

which they used to sing in the Young Men's prayer-meeting in 
the Mariners' church in New York, had been to him a source 
of great consolation. Often during his illness he desired to have 
it sung to him, he joining in as he was able. His sorrowing 
mother and sisters could not but be resigned to their loss, when 
they witnessed his peaceful end, and knew that he was happy and 
at rest." Some months after his decease, his sister wrote us a 
minute account of his sufferings and death, in which she says, "I 
wish you could have been here to have seen him die so happily. 
The Lord must have loved him very much to have given him 
such a death. He was sick only nine days ; but during that 
time he did not forget the Lord one moment. He said very 
often, ' God Eternal, have mercy upon me ! Remember that I 
am but a poor miserable worm ! ' His faith was so strong — so 
true — his words so beautiful, that every one present said it was 
like seeing an angel die." 

(It will be remembered that almost all that were about him, 
were Roman Catholics.) " Being asked if he had confessed, he 
answered, 'Yes, I have confessed to the Great Confessor.' 
There was such a solemn expression as he lifted up his eyes to 
heaven. He was so humble, and so patient, although his suf- 
ferings were very great. He laid them all on Jesus. He was 



254 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SEAMEN. 

always speaking of God One day I heard him say, i How 

I Loid, is thy victory over me ! ' 

u He was told that the sisters of charity and some good priests 

praying tor him, and was asked if he liked that? He 

answered, ' L believe in the prayers of those who believe in 

Before he was taken sick, he had an impression that he 

would not live long. He told his wife so, and said to her. 

4 Take our little son, that he may shed a tear over my grave and 

1 Dear papa ! Dear papa ! ' He often expressed a wish to 

depart, often crying out, 'O Lamb of God, into thy hands I 

commit my spirit !' 

11 We believed he was inspired by God. He told me that he 
would like to die, because then, he said, ' I will see my dear 
father/ He said to his mother, ' I am going to sleep ; while I 
do so, will you pray for me?' He always seemed so happy 
when any one spoke to him of Jesus. One day, as he was feel- 
ing a little better, I remarked to him, ' Who knows but the 
I may gpare your life?' He answered, ' I do not wish to 
live, because I am afraid of the world and of my own heart ; 
but, if I live (lifting his eyes heavenward), it will be only for 
Him !' His mother was amazed at these expressions of a soul 
just ready to depart — while his whole countenance was illumined 
with the brightness of immortality. He was conscious that he 
dying, and exclaimed: 'Lord! show thyself unto me in 
thy glory, and illumine these also who stand around me. May 
these and all those who have gone before from all the ends of 

• arth,* meet me clad in robes that are whiter than snow. 
O i. ray I world, farewell 1' 

• Hia mother expressed her sorrow for his sufferings. He 

ntcr I lis presence unless we are purified, 

nd silver is purified. 1 His mother said, 'I am 

iiii-, my son.' He replied, 'These 

>k of Truth.' Realizing that his end 

* He evidently had reference to the many converted seamen lie was 
accustomed to meet in New York, 



DEATH-BED SCENES. 2$ $ 

tfas near, he expressed a wish to partake of the Lord's Supper. 
Rev. Mr. Itanez, a Protestant clergyman, administered it to 
him. Prayer was offered and hymns sung. He sent his fare- 
wells to his uncle and aunt in New York, and asked their for- 
giveness for all the trouble his unhappy temper had caused 
them. He also sent his dying messages to his young friends in 
New York. He wished his little son to be brought to him, that 
he might give his dying counsel to him. His brother suggested 
that the child was too young to remember what was said to him. 
' Well/ he said, ' tell him to be a good and virtuous man, and 
that there is salvation in none other than Jesus Christ/ These 
were his last words. " 

The effect of his beautiful example and happy death 
was not lost on those who surrounded his dying bed. 
His younger brother, Robert, an officer of cavalry in 
the Chilian army, who since died from exposure, after the 
battle of "Tacna," in 1880, and who was beloved by his 
comrades and officers for his brave and gentle spirit, said, 
"If I knew that I could die like William, I should not be 
afraid to die." 

In describing the death scene, his sister says: 

"What silence, what solemnity reigned ! His wife and his 
mother stood by the bedside ; his brother Henry was sobbing. 
The minister stood with his hands over his eyes. The lamp 
was still burning as the gray dawn crept in through the cur- 
tained window. But where was William ? He was safely sleep- 
ing in the arms of his Saviour, who had washed his sins away. 
The natural beauty of his features was enhanced by the express- 
ion of holy light which spread over his countenance. The 
solemn silence was broken by the voice of the minister reading 
something about those who, like William, died, but will rise again. 
I don't know the words, but they are from the Bible, I suppose. 
At William's request the funeral services was held in the church, 



256 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

which was draped in mourning, A great many people were 
m, among them, all the boys of William's school. His 
r preached a very impressive sermon, and delivered William's 

dviii. to his scholars in these words : ' Never forget God, 

ieie is never any true happiness except in loving Jesus Christ/ 

1 1 e also described his happy death, and spoke of the example he 

had left to his family and friends." 

She closes the letter thus: 

' ' Now, my dear uncle and aunt, adieu ! William is with us 
no more, but it is certain that you have a nephew in heaven." 

So closed the lips of this young brother in Christ. No 
one can doubt the sincerity of his repentance, the genuine- 
ness of his conversion, nor his acceptance by his all-for- 
giving Saviour. Who can measure the good accomplish- 
ed, and to be accomplished, by the effort of that humble, 
unlettered Christian sailor, who in mid-ocean served his 
Master so faithfully, and loved the soul of his brother so 
well, that God gave to him this young Chilian convert 
for the reward of his faithfulness. Yet this was not all. 
He labored zealously for many years to win souls to 
Christ, both at sea and ashore. It is but recently that he 
laid aside the weapons of his warfare and departed to re- 
ceive his inheritance and crown. To-day he rejoices 
with his Chilian brother " in the presence of the angels of 
God," where " there is joy over one sinner that repenteth." 

THE SAILOR TURNED PROFESSOR. 

Early in the fall an Irish sailor boy was sent to me by 

mtleman in the Tract House, as one who was in need 

of a friend I learned from his own lips that he had just 

arrived : n a Black Ball liner from Liverpool, and was 



READS TWENTY-THREE LANGUAGES. 257 

homeless and destitute. I took him under my care 
immediately, found him a child of God, procured for him 
a situation, and watched over his interests. In a few- 
weeks he united with my church. Displaying a talent 
for language, and a desire to study, he was assisted by 
friends, sent to Andover, and thence to Princeton Col- 
lege, where he graduated in 1865. From the time of his 
leaving the Academy, I heard but little of his progress, and 
amid the excitements of the rebellion I lost all track of 
him. In April, 1880, having learned that he had been 
employed in the Second Comptroller's office, Washing- 
ton, D. C, I wrote to that department, making inquiries 
about him. In reply I received his address, and wrote 
to him. My letter found him Professor of Languages, 
Mathematics and Astronomy, Principal of an academy 
on the Hudson, and wearing the honorary titles of A.M. 
and LL. B. In a few days I received from him the fol- 
lowing letter, which tells its own story. The writer 
is referred to in a previous chapter, as having acquired 
twenty-three ancient and modern languages. 

''April 26th, 1880. 
"Rev. Chas. J. Jones: My dear good Friend — How glad I 
am to hear from you ; I just received your letter, which was for- 
warded to me from Washington. I only wish it was yourself was 
here, that I might shake hands with you and embrace you, and 
talk over the long years that have flown since we spoke face to 
face. I have never forgotten you — I never will forget you. I 
never can. I was thinking of you and your family not over two 
days ago. First, I must ask after the health of yourself, Mrs. 
Jones and the children, now of course all grown up — perhaps 
married and away. I trust all are well and happy. Of yourself 
I will say, that I think you are one of those who will never grow 
old. Your big, warm and friendly heart keeps out the cold 
17 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

I all the ravages of time. Well do I remember twenty- 
i -i think how time flies), when a stranger boy, 
poor and friendless, I entered your study. Without any recom- 
mendation, save that I wore a sailor's jacket, which you perceived 
►ned over an honest heart, you took me by the hand, 
liv. warmly, and unreservedly tome, more like a broth- 
er than a stranger that I had never seen before, and then started 
me on the course o( life that I have been pursuing ever since. 
Ah, my good and dear brother, like the evangelist we read of in 
the Pilgrim's Progress, there is many a poor Christian whom you 
have directed and started towards the Wicket Gate, encouraged 
and strengthened on the pilgrimage of life, the happier and bet- 
ter for having met and known you, and whose recollections of 
you were, and are, amongst the most pleasing incidents of their 
lives. I doubt if there is a port in this wide world, or a merchant 
marine, or a navy, in which you w r ould not find hearts that 
would glow at the name of the Rev. Charles J. Jones, of New 
York, and remember some warm friendly impulse or act of his, 
confirming the well-known and well-deserved title of the 'Sailors' 
Friend. ? 

" Yes, dear brother, there are some men that the Lord seems 
to have Stationed, like the evangelist before mentioned, at im- 
ta in the highway of life, to assist, guide, and cn- 
COUiage his poor wanderers. You are one of these. The good 
you have done in the last thirty years to the poor wanderers of all 
lands is only known to ' Him who counteth the number of the 
;' and c whose rewards are in his hands.' What a happy re- 
flection you must have, as you go down the sunny slope of life, 
to fe i look through these Golden Gates of the West, that 

many friendly spirits there who will recognize and wel- 
I remember some kind and friendly act of your life, 
a will ask. my dear Mr. Jones, why I did not write, etc. 
. I don't know wh ; ; only that it was no lack of 

friendship, or gratitude. The many ups and downs 
Q3 of the world, in various ways, switch one off, and 



TELLS HIS OWN STORY. 259 

prevent him often from doing what he ought to do. I did call 
to see you a few years after we parted, but I found you had left 
the city and taken charge of some Institution down the bay. I 
suppose it is where you are still. I even purposed to write to you, 
but procrastination and the excitement of the times prevented me. 

"You are no doubt anxious to know how I have fared, and 
what I have been doing since we last corresponded. It is a 
long story, and I must reserve it in detail, until we meet : but it 
is in brief as follows. Through the kindness of Mr. Darrach 
and several good friends whom he found for me, I was enabled 
to finish my course at Andover and at Princeton. It was my in- 
tention to enter the ministry ; but before I completed my 
college course, my father died, in the old country, leaving my 
mother and several children unprovided for. I felt obliged to 
take some employment in order to earn, and assist them, as 
soon as I graduated from college. I went twice to the old 
country during my college course, and brought out some of my 
brothers and sisters each time. One of my brothers is now an 
esteemed minister of the gospel and stationed as rector over an 
Episcopal church in Connecticut. I also married for love, leav- 
ing my wife in the old country with her friends until I was 
settled in a situation here. We were both poor in this world's 
goods, but rich in every other way. That was seventeen years 
ago ; and we have lived very happily ever since. We have six 
children, healthy and strong and promising. The oldest boy is 
thirteen years old, and is now in the middle class in the 
Academy. 

" But to return. When I graduated, I was offered a place in 
the Second Comptroller's office for some service as a speaker on 
the side of the Union during the presidential campaign. I felt 
under obligation to enter the ministry, because I thought the 
help I received in getting my education was to that end. But 
on an interview with Mr. Darrach, he assured me that he had it 
strictly understood by those friends, that I was free to use my 
education as I liked. I took the place at Washington with the 



CGO FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

intention of remaining only a short time ; but behold, I was 

there eleven ind it seemed as though I never could 

leave. 1 improved my time, however, in the matter of improv- 

mv mind, and about four years ago I was offered a place 

>f Modern Languages, Greek and Astronomy in this 

iemy. I was placed at the head of it some months ago, and 

so far everything is running well. 

H This, my dear friend, is a brief sketch of my life since last 
we met. I have great reason to thank the Lord for his merciful 
dealings with me, and I do. I will.be most happy to hear from 
y< -u, and to learn how the Lord has dealt with you these long 
years. I fear I have wearied you with this long letter, and yet I 
know \\>u will be pleased to hear from me. I am glad that the 
ice is broken. We will have a long talk the next time we meet. 
What great changes in our country and in the world since first 
we met ! Yes, even what changes in the great city of New 
York. Xow I must close, extending to you, my dear brother 
in the Lord, the cordial greeting of one who loves you, and 
wishes you well. 1 trust the summer will not pass before we 
speak face to face, on all the Lord's kind dealings with us. 

11 Yoxxx ever affectionate and grateful friend, 

"T. R." 

After the receipt of this very pleasing letter, I felt more 
and more interested in his history, and I was anxious to 
recall it, as much of the detail of our early intercourse 
never recorded by me, and consequently in the rush- 
ing tide of exciting events, had passed out of my recollec- 
tion. I therefore wrote, asking him to refresh my memory, 
by his own personal reminiscences. This he did in the 
following epistle : 

"Kihgsto Fork, May 2 2nd, 1880. 

-. and Dear Brother — You wish me to write you what I 
llect of our first interview, about twenty-three years ago. 
Well, it is plea8ant to recall this incident, that had such an influ- 



TELLS HIS OWN STORY, 26 1 

ence on my whole life ; and I will do so, as far as I can remember, 
but I must begin a little back. I was the oldest of seven chil- 
dren. My lather, who was an excellent Christian man, beloved 
by all who knew him, was a scripture reader, under the Irish 
Church Mission Society in the west of Ireland. His salary was 
very small, not much over one hundred and ^ty dollars a year ; 
and for nine in a family, this was entirely inadequate, even in 
such a cheap country as Ireland. To help to support the family, 
I taught a small village school for a few years, for a mere trifle. 
But like most boys who are brought up on the sea shore, I con- 
ceived a great desire to go to sea. I studied, with a view to that 
end, works on seamanship and navigation, and gained a good 
theoretical knowledge. 

"In my vacations I made short trips between the ports on our 
west coast, and was said, for a young lad, to be quite expert in 
handling the hookers and small craft that plied between Westport, 
Galway, and Belmullett. I did not give way to my desire to go 
to sea, however, whilst I had employment, and could assist my 
parents. But unexpectedly the society withdrew their missions 
from that part of Ireland for lack of funds and we were all thrown 
out of employment. I thought, now the time had come for me 
to make a move, and getting, reluctantly, the consent of my pa- 
rents, I took my sea-bag and just what money would take me to 
Liverpool. Here I shipped as ordinary seaman on board the 
James Foster, Jr., of the Black Ball Line. I was treated with 
great kindness by the officers. The crew, however, were a very 
rough lot of men, composed of all nationalities. The mode 
of life in those ships completely spoiled all the romance of the 
sea which I had preconceived. 

" Not having the money or the experience to procure a proper 
outfit, I had to rough my way the best I could ; and I must say 
that among the roughest and wildest of these poor sons of the sea, 
there are very many redeeming qualities and noble traits, which 
they seldom get credit for. I used to retire sometimes for prayer 
under the forecastle, and there, one morning, whilst kneeling on 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

the chain cables, and resting against the heel of the bowsprit, I 
l >v one of the roughest and hardest of the crew. I [e 

i >f the forecastle. I expected a kick and a cuff and 
an Oath: but no — he spoke as mildly as a child, and said: 
'Don't be disturbed, go on/ He quietly looked for what he 
wanted and withdrew. He was a brawny, powerful man, and 
few dare to contradict him. Ever after that little incident, he was 
my friend : and one night, while taking in the flying-jib, saved 
me from being washed overboard, and showed me many other 
of kindness. I often asked myself how the mere fact of see- 
ing a boy pray could have such an effect upon that rough, wild, 
dare-devil seaman? I never met him since. 

'I entered the port of New York without one cent in my 
pocket ; yet as I passed up the Narrows and saw all the natural 
beauty of the scenery and the great wealthy city beyond, I felt 
that I should not want. I felt that the Lord whom I loved, and 
who I felt was directing my steps, would not see me want, espec- 
ially as I meant to do right and follow his guidance. 

All the crew hastened away, before the ship was brought to 

the dock ; I was the only one that remained. In helping to 

wash the between-decks, I picked up a tract that was laying on 

th ! floor. It was entitled, ' Advice to Young Seamen on Going 

re/ I thought this appropriate, and kept it and read it. I 

m ide up my mind that I could not help my poor parents much 

i. and I knew that they now needed assistance ; so 

1 to myself that I would try my fortune on shore. The 

had evidently been pleased with my course on the voyage, 

for he came forward, and said I might stay by the ship as long 

I liked I thanked him; but did not like the idea of going 

back to Liverpool. So I said, I would try what I could do on 

1 had DO money, and the only course for me was to go 

, whence, if I could get nothing to 

. and pay my board with my advance. I 

i street near the Last River. 

The next day 1 walked up through the city, looking for a 



TELLS HIS OWN STORY. 263 

situation, but was unsuccessful. While returning to my board- 
ing-house, discouraged, I passed by the American Tract Society, 
near the City Hall. I immediately remembered it, on account 
of the tract, and saw that it was the same number ; so I concluded 
that was the place to go in, and get advice. I went boldly in, 
and I was passed to the gentleman in charge, who was called 
Mr. Eastman. I told him I wanted some employment. I was 
willing to do what I could. He smiled, and said the best thing 
he could do for me would be to recommend me to the Rev. 
Charles J. Jones of the Mariners' church, an excellent man, who 
had been himself at sea, and took a great interest in sailors. 
He wrote your address on a slip of paper, and handed it to me 
and gave me directions how I could best get there. I thanked him 
kindly and went out : and I felt that moment, that the hand of 
Providence was in the matter. I always made the passage of 
scripture which says ' Commit thy way unto the Lord, and he 
will direct thy path/ my motto. I went directly to your resi- 
dence, rang, and was admitted. 

"I believe, my dear brother, that the latch-string of your 
house always hung on the outside, that whosoever came might 
enter. You may not now remember, but I was dressed in a blue 
cloth monkey jacket and trousers. You did not wait to hear my 
business. You took me by the hand and welcomed me, and 
made me feel perfectly at home ; and before I knew it, I was dis- 
coursing with you with the confidence of an old friend. The 
first thing you inquired of me was, whether I was a believer in 
our blessed Lord Jesus ; and when you found that I was, 
you were rejoiced, and asked many questions concerning my 
home and friends, and my experience. I then told you what I 
wanted, and how I was directed to you by the gentleman at the 
house of the Tract Society. You did not like the idea of my 
giving up the sea. You thought I might do much good there, 
and that good Christian young men were much wanted in our 
merchant service, etc. 

" I told you that I loved the sea, but that I was doing this for 






FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 



I* duty. I told you of my parents and family in Ireland, 
and then you 1 iconciled. You asked me where I was 

ng, I told you, and you said I must leave there at once ; 
that these were rum-holes and ' sharks-places' of the worst kind. 
1 then told you that I went there because I had no money, and 
could do no better. You put on your hat, and said I must 
come and take my things, and go to the Sailors' Home in Cheiry 
t. You went with me, and asked the landlord how much 
my bill was ; when he had the effrontery to ask for a whole week 
(or indeed I am not sure, but for a month's board), and I had 
only come there the night before. You gave him some plain 
talk, and threatened to have his license taken away ; then he 
came to terms, and let me off with a few dollars, which you had 
the kindness to pay. I then took my things, and you went with 
me to the proprietor of the Sailors' Home. 

"On leaving me you told me to call the next day at your 
lence, which I did, when you kindly introduced me to your 
lady, and showed me your children, and spoke to me with the 
warm-heartedness of an old and true friend. You then sat 
down and wrote me a letter to Mr. James Darrach, Superintendent 
of the New York Hospital, who, on the strength of it, gave me 
a place. I was soon enabled to send help to my parents. 

''Mr. Darrach, so<»n after, taking an interest in me, I was 

started and helped to an education, which I need not detail 

you know it well. Truly, dear brother, we can say 

that 'the ways of the Lord are wonderful' How different 

ill have been my life if I had not met you on that day ! My 

: Either died nearly eighteen years ago, but I have directed 

►me extent, of all the children, who are 

them l up, and settled in life. Was I not right, 

brother, in calling you the Evangelist that heaven had 

in my waj 



CHAPTER XII. 

INCREASED SUCCESS— ANSWERS TO PRAYERS. 

Extracts from diary — Blessed meeting — Men weeping over sin — Why will 
ye die ? — Immense audience — Fourteen prayerless years — Praise in many 
languages— " I want to love Jesus " — Unexpected honor— People aroused 
— Ten nationalities received into communion — Time and energies taxed 
— Chinese sailors— Prayer in Burton's Theatre — Noon prayer-meeting in 
five ships — Outside addresses— " In labors more abundant" — Kingdom 
of God spreading on the sea — *' Bringing his sheaves with him " — Burn- 
ing of the steamship Austria — Polyglotts— Literary labors— Chinese 
prayer -meeting — Prayer answered — A lee shore — Pump and pray — In 
deaths oft — Both cables part — Captain and wife swallowed up — Ship 
dashed to pieces — Crew saved — A desolate shore — Arrive home. 

The year 1858 opened auspiciously, and gave us an 
earnest of increased success. On the last night of 1857, 
I preached a sermon from 1 Samuel xix. 11: "If thou 
save not thy life (Heb. soul) to-night, to-morrow thou 
shall be slain." I urged upon the people the necessity of 
immediate effort to secure salvation. The audience was 
greatly moved. Men and women, seamen and landsmen, 
were affected to tears. The prayer-meeting held on the 
evening of New Year's day was crowded with anxious 
souls. Forty persons rose to ask the prayers of the con- 
gregation, and expressed their purpose of living hereafter 
for God. A vivid impression of the intense interest 
manifested, and the reviving influences at work, may be 
best conveyed by giving a few brief extracts from my 
12 265 



266 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

diary, the reason for which will appear further on. In 
these extracts, I am confronted with the difficulty 
of writing an autobiography, without making myself too 
prominent. I can only say that it is my sincere desire, 
as much as possible, to lose myself in my Master's work. 
With this disclaimer I will quote : 

"January 2nd — Prayer-meetings very large. Forty rose for 
prayer again in the evening. 

11 jrJ. — Communion in the afternoon. Fourteen received on 
confession, two by certificate. Our membership has now reached 
two hundred and sixty-five. The church densely packed in the 
evening from floor to gallery — seats brought into the aisles. R.ev. 
J. L. Wilson, formerly missionary in Africa, and Rev. Dr. Mc- 
Cartee, of Ningpo, China, addressed the meeting. Monthly con- 
cert truly grand. 

11 4th. — More than twenty-five men called at my office this 
morning, some weeping over their sins, and all making promise 
of amendment. 

"j/4. — Large Temperance meeting — thirty persons signed 
the pit 

il 6ih. — Prayer-meeting in my study this forenoon — sixteen 
nt, some weeping over sin Attended five prayer- 
tings this afternoon and evening. The Lord is among us, of 
a truth. 

%€ 7&. — Prayer-meeting in my study, twenty-five present, twen- 
ty-two of them sailors. 

" Sih. — Besieged all day. More than twenty called for books. 
Prayer-meeting this evening, the largest we have ever had. Room 
icked as to be uncomfortable. Every conceivable space oc- 
cupied. Read Ezekiel xxxiii. Plead with them from the words, 
* Why will ye die? ' Several rose for prayer, some new cases. 

" gOi. — Blessed n wsl Souls trembling with new-found joy. 
iverted Jew — Bailors holding fast tD Christ Have great need to 



EXTRACTS FROM DIARY. 267 

be humbled under such abundant success. Nearly seventy sea- 
men present at our prayer-meeting this evening. 

1 ' 10th. — Sabbath. Preached this morning with an unction from 
the Holy One, from Mark xiv. 38 : ' Watch and pray/ In the 
afternoon addressed Sabbath-school at its anniversary service. 
Urged the children to lay their souls on the altar of God, as a liv- 
ing sacrifice, through the Great High Priest. In the evening the 
house was crowded more than ever. Preached from Matt, xviii. 3 : 
1 Except ye be converted and become as little children, ye shall 
not enter into the kingdom of heaven/ The immense audience 
was rapt with attention. I believe that souls were awakened by 
that sermon. May God multiply their numbers, 

' ' nth. — Twenty-two persons at the morning prayer-meeting 
in my study. One, with tears, a sailor, expressed his sorrow for 
sin, and determination to live henceforth for Christ. Says he 
made up his mind a week ago, while in our church. Another 
said he had not bowed his knees in prayer for fourteen years, until 
this morning. Called from breakfast table before the meal was 
half finished ; could not return until one o'clock. Hardly time 
to eat, and less to sleep. 

" 13th. — Social meeting at my house, ninety persons present. 

" 14th. — Making arrangements for a German prayer-meeting. 
Three converted sailors going out in the ship 'Whirlwind,' to 
Australia, called for a supply of books. Have just heard that fifty 
men of the crew of the receiving ship North Carolina rose to ask 
the prayers of God's people for their salvation. 

li 15th. — The three converted men of the 'Whirlwind' had a 
pleasing reception from their shipmates, who took them by the 
hand, congratulating them and expressing their gladness that they 
were to have a religious influence on board. 'What hath God 

wrought?' Men are being awakened everywhere. John M , 

a sailor, told me to-day, that he was one of one hundred and fifty 
who were awakened on board the U. S. steamer ' Independence,' 
in 1S50, through the efforts of a pious boatswain. He leaves in 



~o8 FIFTY WEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

r for Europe to-day, and asks prayers, that he may be 

steadfast 

"2; I days passed without a single entry. Norwegian 

and prayer-meeting, largely attended. What joy to 

ie God in many languages. Our eldest daughter, five years 

awoke us this morning sobbing bitterly. I asked her 

what was the matter ? she said, ' O, 1 do want to be good, and love 

J -us ! I want to lea in to read, so that 1 can know how to do 

1/ God's Spirit is striving early with the child. O that we 

may live to see her walking in the truth ! 

u 2j//i. — Read an essay on ' the Unit — or the power of indi- 
vidual influence/ before the Young Men's Christian Association of 
New York, this evening, by request. 

" 26th. — Attended three prayer-meetings to-day, and lectured 
on the 'leaven in the meal/ Luke xiii. 20, 21. Large audience, 
extra seats brought in. Held prayer-meeting half an hour after 
the lecture, to ask the blessing upon the word spoken. At the 
j the church members rose and expressed their determination 
to do more for Christ than ever. 

11 2jth. — Verily God is pouring out His spirit among us. Forty 

>ns at prayer-meeting. Five rose to ask prayer. Six called 

< >n me about trie salvation of their souls. Two of these were 

French, could speak no English. Fell back on my French 

and urged them to seek Christ alone. Gave them tracts and 

:ily Food/ in their own language. 
' " 28th. — Men and women at my house all the afternoon, for 
counsel, asking ' what must we do/ Prayed and conversed with 

u 29th. — More than forty at prayer-meeting this forenoon. In 
the aftern 1 and gave counsel to six persons, deeply dis- 

ied on account of sin. 

u 30th. — Attended a meeting of the male members of the 

church, pa .Unions to live more entirely for Christ, and to 

be m li Twenty of them volunteered to go out, two and 

1 into the ind lanes >f the city to compel men to 



EXTRACTS FROM DIARY. 2O9 

come in, that God's house may be filled/ Visiting anxious souls, 
and praying from house to house all day. Prayed with four at 
my own dwelling. 

" j 1st. — Sabbath. Prayer-meeting at 7 o'clock in the morn- 
ing, in my study. Twelve persons present. Reading-room 
full of praying people at 9 a. m. At 10.30, preached from Psalm 
1. 23. Large and attentive audience. Also in the afternoon to 
over two hundred children of the church, from Prov. xi. 8, 9 ; 
and in the evening to a very large audience from Luke xvi. 
19-31 — Rich man and Lazarus. Very attentive as usual." 

This month of January gave character to all the rest of 
the year. The blessed work went joyfully forward. The 
people were aroused, their efforts for the salvation of souls 
enhanced, and their own souls stimulated to more intense 
and heartfelt devotion. At our communion in February, 
seventeen persons were admitted to membership, among 
whom were Chilians, Danes, French, Americans, English, 
Scotch, Spaniards, Manksmen, Swedes, and Channel 
Islanders. The audiences were very large and attentive, 
and very often moved to tears. 

Later on, such entries as these appear, at intervals : 

"February 15th — Correspondence swallowing up my time. 

"21*1 — Preached three times to-day — audience bathed in 
tears. 

11 26th. — Preached four times to-day, and visited the U. S. re- 
ceiving ship ' North Carolina. ' Put on board one hundred and 
thirty volumes, and two hundred copies of the ' Sea Bird/ for the 
use of the crew. 

" 28th. — Visited the 'North Carolina/ Preached on board — • 
many weeping. 

" March yth. — Monthly concert of prayer — a feast. 

" 8ih — Daily eleven o'clock prayer-meeting, full: seventy- 
five or eighty persons present. 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

h. — Four Chinese sailors called. 

" 16 1 ..- -Took {>art in noon-day prayer-meeting at Broome 
and nd at Rutger Streets. Bowed in prayer with two 

I s who were asking after more of the spirit of Christ. 

" / ,vv. — Twenty-seven in the inquiry meeting. 

" 2lsL — Many souls decided for eternity. 

" 22fuL Si new inquirers. One poor fellow threw himself 
down on his hands and knees and cried out, ' O Lord, take me ! 
take me out of this sinful world/ 

" 23rd. — Several new cases of inquiry. Blessed tidings from 
the sea. A vessel arrived to-day reports that she had spoken five 
ships on the homeward passage, on board of each of which, it 
had been determined to hold religious services in concert daily 
at twelve o'clock. 

" On the 24th, fourteen were in the inquiry room. 

11 25th. — Delivered an address before the Jersey City Bible 
Society. 

" On the 26th, thirty in the inquiry rooms, eight new cases. 

u On the 30A, fifteen inquirers. Preached from Luke xvii. 
32 : ' Remember Lot's wife/ Souls in agony. Four indulging 
in hope. 

" J 1 st. — Precious meeting in a work shop in White street : 
a whole family bowed, and in tears — father, mother, children 
and employees. Preached this evening from Isaiah lxii. 10: 
1 Prepare ye the way of the people/ 

" April 4th. — A high day. Preached this evening from Exodus 
2() : 'Consecrate yourselves/ Thirty-four admitted to 
church — thirty-one on profession. Monthly concert — full. 

flk. — No flagging. Preached from Gal. iii. 23 : 'Under 
the Law/ 

" 6th. — Visited the Retreat and Widows' Home, Staten Island. 

li yth. — Preached in Stanton street church, from Gal. iii. 13 : 
'Christ b 

"gth. — Preached at the Retreat from 2nd Cor. v. 1, at the 
funeral of a sailor. At Stapleton in the evening, from Heb. xi. 



EXTRACTS FROM DIARY. 271 

6 : ■ Without faith it is impossible to please God. ' Also ad- 
dressed Sabbath-school — much weeping under the sermon. 

" 1 8th, — Preached in 50th street Presbyterian church from 
Matthew xviii. 14 : ' It is not the will of your Father who is in 
heaven that one of these little ones should perish/ 

"23rd. — Preached at Broome street Presbyterian church, 
from Gal. vi. 14 : ' Glorying in the Cross.' 

"May 4th, — Visited public school in Henry street. Ad- 
dressed all departments. Temperance address in the evening. 
il 5th. — Addressed Baptist Mariners' Society in the evening. 

" 21st. — Attended funeral of the second mate of the ship 
1 Mandarin, ' killed, while in the act of brutally beating a sailor. 
Visited the slayer in the Tombs ; also visited the Retreat at Staten 
Island. 

' ' 30th. — Preached three sermons to-day, and delivered address. 
Audience still increasing. Souls pleading for nearness to God. 

"June 2nd. — Visited the Tombs twice. Visitors and funerals 
taking up too much of my time. 

" 4th. — Several more inquirers. 

1 ' 6th. — Preached twice and administered the Lord's Supper. 
Conducted monthly concert. Letters full of zeal. The writers 
working among their shipmates. 

" 13th. — Preached three times. Once at the Five Points. 

11 1 6th. — Overrun with callers. 

" 1 8th. —Wrote all night until 5 A.M. Crowded with busi- 
ness all day. Prayer-meeting at night. 

"July 1st. — Wrote until 3.20 A.M. 

11 8th. — Wrote till midnight. 

" 1 6th. — A sailor, converted here, returned to-day, bringing 
two of his shipmates, who were led to Christ through his efforts 
and example. ' Bringing his sheaves with him/ 

" 22nd. — Visited the U. S. receiving ship ' North Carolina/ 
Three hundred men waiting draft to U. S. steamer ' Savannah,' 
several followers of Christ among them. Three or four inquirers 
daily, asking what they must do to be saved. 



j;j FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

44 Aug jrd Visited U. S. steamer 'Savannah ;' gave thirty- 
six volumes, and a laige supply of other reading matter. Twelve 
of her crew are Christians — five o( them Baptists. One connected 
with mv own church, and six who have no connection with the 
Church visible. 

'.. — House still crowded. Seats in the aisles — no diminu- 
tion of interest. 

11 1 j//i. —Dense crowd again. 

u j 2nd. — Enthusiasm in the congregation on account of the 
sermon on allegiance of the sea to Christ, from Isa. xlii. 10. 

11 23rd. — Conversion in the Tombs. The man who killed 
the second mate of the ship 'Mandarin/ 'Behold, he prayeth/ 

11 25th. — Made a congratulatory address to the crew of the U. 
S. steamer 'Niagara/ in the Cooper Institute, on the successful 
laying of the Atlantic Cable. 

" Sep/. 17th. — News came to-day of a Portuguese sailor, who 
was converted in New Bedford, and has been the means of the 
:rsion of thirteen of the crew of the ship 'Fairfield/ includ- 
ing the captain. 

11 Oct. 2nd. — A letter received from the U. S. steamer 'Savan- 
nah, ' asking prayers for the crew. States that nightly prayer-meet- 
ire held on board of her among the men. 

"3rd. — Received sixteen at communion to-day, thirteen on 
1. Letters read at the monthly concert show that the 
kingdom of God is spreading on the sea. 

" 3th. — Captain D — , of the ship 'Paragon/ told me to-day of 
a Catholic priest in Spain, who visited him daily, and as a result 
,mc interested in Christ and his salvation. He at once re- 
ceived tracts for distribution ashore, and plead for more that he 
might scatter them freely in the hospitals. 

" 10th. — Preached to boatmen in a tent at Jersey City this after- 
:. [t was packed, and crowds outside could not get in. 

44 iith. — A in called, and wished me to get him a 

of praying men. Anot tain, to tell m~ of his con- 

version at sea, through readme; the life of Iledly Vicars. 



LITERARY LABORS. 273 

" 1 6th. — A man came to me bursting with emotion, took 
him to the Old Slip sailors' noon-meeting, and submitted his case. 
Prayed and conversed with twenty-four persons. 

" 24th. — House crowded to repletion, pulpit stairs and chan- 
cel full. Preached a sermon on the burning of the steamship 
'Austria.' — Seats in the aisles. 

" 29th. — Heard to-day of another vessel in which the crew 
hold daily service in the forecastle, at which all hands were 
present. 

" Nov. 14th. — This evening the spirit of the Lord was mani- 
festly present. The people listened as for eternity. Good was 
surely done." 

I have thus far followed my diary simply to connect the 
events of the past with what I conceive to be the great 
work of the century among seamen. During the year, 
one hundred and sixty-nine souls in all, were added to 
the church, making a total membership of four hundred 
and thirty-four. The number of letters written was 553. 
Many of those received from sailors, in reply, would do 
credit to men of greater pretensions. They indicate an 
amount of intellectual furniture, in many cases, that being 
sanctified must make itself felt in the spread of the Gospel 
of Christ among the nations. In September of this year, 
among the seamen who called at my house, one group of 
eight who came in together, presented so diversified an 
appearance that I was curious to hear from their own lips 
what languages they spoke. I found that they repre- 
sented five different nationalities — Norway, France, Italy, 
Portugal and England, and spoke twelve different 
languages, averaging over three to each man. These 
languages were Arabic, Bengalese, Danish, Dutch, 

English, French, German, Italian, Norwegian, Portu- 
12* 



274 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

guese, Spanish, and Turque. One man, a member of my 
church, educated in the University of Upsala, in Sweden, 
spoke ten languages, and wrote seven of them grammati- 
cal!}'. Who can measure the influence of such men, were 
the\- but brought under the power of Divine grace, and 
their varied acquisitions laid at the Saviour's feet. 

I have great reason for gratitude to my Saviour, that 
my duties as pastor have not once been interfered with 
by illness. I was at intervals compelled to lay aside for 
a day or two. But this was from sheer weariness, rather 
than from any physical derangements. In addition 
to my correspondence, I wrote over twenty articles for the 
press, two essays, one on the " Sea and the Church, " their 
mutual relation and dependence, and one on the " Moral 
Power of the Sea," together with a voluminous annual 
report for the Board of Trustees. The number of 
persons calling on me to consult on every conceivable 
subject during the year, was nearly four thousand. The 
number of volumes of all kinds, and the quantity of 
religious newspapers, tracts and periodicals distributed, it 
would be difficult to estimate. They went out over the 
by the barrel full, in every possible direction. With 
the rest of our labors, this year, an effort was made to 
reach the many Chinese sailors, whom legitimate com- 
merce as well as the Coolie trade had thrown upon our 
chores. In some instances the destitute were provided 
with means and ships to return to their homes. Nor 
were their immortal interests disregarded. A number 
of the strangers were gathered, and a Bible class formed, 
h met in the basement of our church, where they 
were instructed in divine things by Rev. Dr. McCartee, 
^f the presbytery of Xing Po, China, who brought Jesus 



PRAYER ANSWERED. 275 

and his love to their notice in their own language. Quite 
a number of them were regular in their attendance, and 
appeared to be interested in the truth. The result 
of this effort we may learn hereafter, when we see as we 
are seen, and know as we are known. Many incidents 
of deep interest occurred during this exciting period, 
some of which are given below. 

REMARKABLE DELIVERANCE IN ANSWER TO PRAYER. 

There is an evident distrust in many minds with regard 
to special answers to prayer. Even among nominal 
believers there is an amount of scepticism, which I 
fear cuts the sinews of effort in that direction. Men, 
in the exercise of a voluntary humility, refrain from 
bringing special subjects before God in prayer, lest they 
should be chargeable with presumption. Is not such 
conduct reprehensible and chargeable to a paralysis of 
faith ? Sailors are so conversant with the wonderful ways 
of God on the sea, witness such exhibition of Divine 
power, and are so conscious of human helplessness, that 
they of all men ought to learn the lesson inculcated by 
our Saviour, that men ought always to pray and not to 
faint. They do sometimes witness marked illustrations 
of providential interference with the action of the ele- 
ments when human wisdom is swallowed up, as in the 
107th Psalm, in which it is stated, that at the particu- 
lar juncture, when men are at their wits' end, "Then 
they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, and He bringeth 
them out of their distresses." Two instances of such de- 
liverance are here given, as they came to me from one 
whose experiences his own pen records : 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

A 1 ; i jiI FrunJ. — I desire to record the covenant goodness 
of the Lord, on two distinct occasions in which I have been 

1 from shipwreck and imminent death in answer to prayer. 
lined last month. We were coming on the coast, and 

C ted t( i make the land about 2 p. m. At noon I felt very un- 
believing that we ought to be steering more to the eastward. 
The vessel was then making about nine knots, under a press of 
canvas. A heavy sea was running and the snow falling so thick 
and fast that we could scarcely see a yard beyond our flying jib- 
in. I intimated my fears to the captain. It was evident, how- 
ever, that he did not share in them. I could only commit our 
case therefore to Him who hath 'gathered the wind in his fists/ 
and ' measured the waters in the hollow- of his hand/ We went 
to dinner, the captain ordering the watch to keep a good lookout. 
While we were at the table, it pleased God to show us our dan- 
ger, by clearing up the atmosphere for a short time so that we 
could see the land, w r hich was so close aboard that it appeared 
to loom up over our mastheads. The helm was put a star- 

1, the yards braced up, and in a few seconds — for sailors 
work sharp in time of danger — we were standing off the land, 
of which we lost sight almost as quickly as it was revealed. 

" This incident showed me how faithful God is to his gracious 

iise. I shall never cease to thank Him for his preserving 
care. Had not the weather cleared the minute it did, no doubt 

hip would have gone ashore and all hands been dashed to 
pieces on the rocky coast. Surely God answered my prayer that 
day. 

"On another occasion, of which I have a very vivid recollec- 
tion, and under similar circumstances, my prayer was answered 
again. It had been blowing and snowing heavily for some time. 

re was a h< m, and toward the close of the day the wind 

I away, to a calm. Just then it cleared up and revealed to us 

a rocky i red with snow, upon which the breakers were 

furiously dashing. You may imagine my feelings, when I tell 

you that there were ten SOuls on board, not one of whom except 



PRAYER ANSWERED. 277 

myself had given any indication of their belief even in the exist- 
ence of such a being as God. I stood on the poop looking anx- 
iously at the iron-bound lee shore, toward which each swelling 
wave was driving us broadside on, to destruction. I instinc- 
tively repeated to myself the lines of a beautiful hymn: 

1 ' ' Thus my heart the hope will cherish, 
While to thee I lift mine eye, 
Thou wilt save me ere I perish, 
Thou wilt hear the sailor's cry. ' 

"The captain was apparently much alarmed. His face indi- 
cated it. A few days before he had boasted that he feared noth- 
ing. But now he had anguish in his looks as he said to me, ' Sir, 
the anchors would be of no sendee, even if we let them go. The 
rocks would bring her up before the anchors would take hold.' 
I hoped then that he felt the need of a Saviour's love to his never- 
dying soul ! 

"As nothing could be done in the exigency, I went below, in- 
tending to tie up my papers, and the certificate of my church 
membership, and bind them about my body ; so that if I per- 
ished and was washed , ashore, my friends might perhaps learn 
what had become of me. But before I went to my trunk, I 
bowed my knee in prayer to my Saviour, and asked him, if accord- 
ing to his will, that he would save our lives. I reminded him 
that he had heard my prayer before and saved me and them that 
were with me ; and pleaded that he would again interpose for his 
own sake, and save us from approaching death. I assure you. I 
had faith in him at that time. While I was yet speaking, I heard 
the captain calling to the men to brace round the yards. The 
wind had come off the land, and we were saved. 

4 ' The sceptic may call me a fool, and tell me it was all imagi- 
nation ; but nothing on earth can shake my belief that God had 
answered my prayer. As a further evidence of Divine interposi- 
tion, I mu.^t state that the wind held on just long enough for us 
to get a good offing, and then chopped round again to near its 



FIFTV YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

former quarter. By making a couple of tacks we reached our 

1 ( I that men would praise the Lord for his good- 
ness, and lor his wonderful works to the children of men f " 

Still another incident, illustrative of this subject, was 
D by a seaman, in one of our monthly concerts of 
prayer. He said he thanked God that he had been a 
sailor. He had been in some tight places at sea, but he 
never had hidden his religion nor lost his confidence in 
God. Said he : 

4 1 We were once driven to great straits. The wind blew a per- 
fect hurricane, our ship sprung a leak, and it seemed as if we must 
> the bottom in a few minutes. Our men worked hard at 
the pumps. The water was gaining on us. Death stared us in 
the face. I ran down below, and on my knees asked Jesus to save 
us, and to give me a token. I opened my Bible at Isaiah xli 10. 
These w< >rds met my eyes : * Fear thou not, for I am with thee ; 

not dismayed, for I am thy God ; I will strengthen thee, yea, I 
will help thee, yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my 
right ' That was enough. I ran on deck and said, ' Men, 

we are going somewhere, but we are not going down !' I reported 
to diem, that I had asked of the Lord, and how he had answered 
'Now/ said I, ' men, pump and pray, and pray and pump!' 
And they did it with a will. We pumped and prayed our vessel 
[ believe, in answer to prayer and promise. But 
what is the use of praying, with a leak in the ship, unless we 
pump also? It must ever be. Work and pray and pray and 
work. v 

That sailor is still living, and is a prominent litterateur 
in New York City. 

"IN DEATHS OFT." 

No men living have more need of salvation in Christ 
;\ than have the men of the deep: yet it may be 



IN DEATHS OFT. 279 

said of them in general, that they think less of their perils, 
and exposures, and feel still less the need of the consola- 
tions of the Gospel, than other men. If it were not for 
the ravages of sin, for its benumbing and deadening pow- 
er over the conscience, its blinding effect on the judg- 
ment and the reason, and its paralyzing influence on the af- 
fections and will, we might expect that the very precaution 
which is born of the exigencies of their daily experience, 
and their constant acquaintance with danger and death, 
would drive them to the feet of the Saviour for help. 

But while this general inconsistency is to be deplored, 
it is a source of consolation that all are not absolutely 
reckless. There are exceptions, many notable exceptions, 
to this general rule. There is a certain proportion among 
them, who, when confronted with disaster and peril, find 
their consolation in the assurance of Divine protection ; 
whose faith leads them to commit their way unto him, 
who rules the whirlwind, and rides upon the storm. 

Instances of such faith, in seasons of trial, are none the 
less worthy of onr notice and admiration because they are 
comparatively rare. They present a cheering contrast to 
the dark background of despair, which full often confronts 
men when they are suddenly brought face to face with 
disaster and death. 

Such faith is illustrated in the narrative of a Swedish 
ship carpenter, a member of my congregation, who in a 
communication to me on his return from sea, in the win- 
ter of 1859, says: 

" I had the misfortune to ship in the ill-fated t Colorado/ of 
Portsmouth, X. II., bound to the East Indies, laden with coal. 
We reached our port of destination after a fine passage, and 
having discharged our cargo, sailed for a distant point on the 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

But one evening, being about sixteen miles olTthc land, 
and in the immediate vicinity of some dangerous shoals, the 

captain felt that it would be prudent to anchor, and take day- 
light tor it, in the morning. But, unfortunately for us, as the 
darkness deepened, the wind increased, and blew dead on shore. 
Toward morning it became evident that one anchor would not 
hold her ; we therefore let go the second, about four bells in the 
m< traing watch, and paid out the chain to the bitter end. By thi 
time the gale had increased in fury, and it continued to blow 
harder and harder, until it became a perfect hurricane, and 
threatened us with destruction every moment. 

u It was evident to me that she could not stand it ^ery long ; 
and being carpenter of the ship, I ventured to suggest to the 
captain, that I was afraid it would be necessary, as a last 
re^' >urce, to sacrifice the masts, to save the ship. The captain, 
thinking that the gale was at its height, and would soon begin to 
, :rate, refused to give the order to cut away the masts. So 
far fr< >m moderating, however, it blew yet harder ; and by mid- 

bt the captain's sad mistake was made apparent, by the sud- 
parting of both our cables. As a necessary result, our good 
, which a moment before, was holding her own against the 
fun- of the waves, was now driving rapidly before them, to the 
place of her destruction. She was abandoned entirely to the 
mercy of the winds and waves, and we began to think very sen- 
ior our own safety. 

" In this hour of darkness and despair, I prayed earnestly to 
I, in whom alone all my trust was centered, that he would, 
for Jesus' sake, come to our help, and rescue us from the sud- 
den death that was evidently awaiting us unless he interposed for 
safety. After drifting shoreward at the sport of the elements, 
about four hours, we were startled by a heavy crash. High 
cliffs were distinguishable on either hand, through the darkness 
of the night, and gave unmistakable evidence that we were on 
an iron-bound lee-shore. It was apparent, also, that our ship 
could not long withstand the resistless force of the combined 



CAPTAIN AND WIFE SWALLOWED UP. 28 1 

action of wind and sea. The breakers were sweeping our decks 
fore and aft. Yet I had faith in God. I prayed for daylight, 
which was just dawning, and which I hoped might reveal to 
us some means of relief. Just at this time the captain's wife, 
who was standing on the poop-deck, was swept off by an angry 
wave, which was her own and only funeral escort. The captain, 
seeing his wife carried away, in wild despair plunged after her, 
in the vain hope of saving her. At that moment a huge sea, 
lifting up our devoted craft, hove her down on her beam ends, 
and they both disappeared beneath the wreck. 

" It was now daylight The vessel was fast breaking up, 
grinding to pieces on the rocky bottom. By our united efforts 
and skill, we succeeded in getting a line ashore by means of a 
buoy, which we rigged so that we could propel it through the 
surf. Thus, the officers, and the crew, except the captain and 
his wife, were saved. Among the rescued was the son of the 
captain, a boy seven years old. For three weeks we were on 
this inhospitable coast, living on a handful of rice a day per man, 
and a very scanty supply of water, which we secured only by 
digging holes in the ground. I felt very grateful that we had even 
that. How much worse our situation might have been ! I 
thanked God that we were not left to perish on a desolate shore. 

" One day, while we were meditating means of getting away, 
our attention was drawn to a small steamer standing up along the 
coast. We at once commenced signalling her by throwing our 
arms about, as we had nothing else, and finally succeeded in attract- 
ing her attention. On learning our situation, the captain kindly 
offered to give us a passage to Point de Galle. Here we gave our- 
selves up to the American Consul. Our chief-officer got away in 
a French ship for Calcutta, and at the expiration often days, our 
Consul refused to support us any longer. As a result of his in- 
human conduct, we were left without either food or shelter. 
Through the kindness of the British Consul, however, we were 
cared for, and enabled to get ships to take us home. 

"I mention these facts to show how God in his mercy can and 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

does save them that put their trust in him. I hope it may be a 
meai turagement to you to know the diets, and that as an 

illustration of the power of prayer, as well as the covenant faithful- 
of God, it may prove a lasting benefit to any who hear it, 
who have not yet given themselves to God." 



CHAPTER XIII. 

SIXTY YEARS IN SIN. 

James Bisby— Conversion at sixty — "Behold the Lamb " — Attention 
riveted — Signs of penitence — Soul in agony for him — Such a great sin- 
ner—His career — Three times shipwrecked — Sixty days in an open boat 
— An aggravated case — The first step — Penitent prayer — Union with the 
church — His experiences — A curious forecastle — Missionary labors and 
perils — His narrative blessed — Entered into rest — One smile from Jesus — 
The last call -A contrast. 

The conversion of James Bisby, a sailor nearly sixty 
years of age, who had been in positive and open rebellion 
against God on the sea for over forty-three years, took 
place on a Sabbath evening in March. The record of his 
, and some of the immediate results, are here append- 
ed. According to his own account he had spent the day 
in idleness and drinking. After tea, he invited his wife to 
accompany him to one of his familiar drinking resorts, 
but she positively refused. He then mentioned a place 
of amusement, and urged her to go with him there. 
This also she declined. Being annoyed by her unwilling- 
!, <4 Well, will you go to church with mc ?" 
To this request she cheerfully assented, for it had long 
been th of her heart to have him spend his Sab- 



JAMES BISBY. 283 

baths in the house of God. She hastened to get ready^ 
and in a few minutes they were on their way to our 
Mariners' church. 

On reaching the house of God, and finding the services 
already begun, they took a seat near the door. The 
difficulty of hearing at that distance induced the old man 
to seek a place nearer the speaker; and being enough un- 
der the influence of liquor to make him regardless of the 
opinion of others, he took his wife by the arm, and made 
his way up the centre aisle, till he reached the front seat, 
and there " came to," immediately opposite the pulpit. 
The long gray hair and snow-white bushy beard of the 
old sailor, and his long march up the aisle, drew my atten- 
tion, as it did also that of the congregation, and at once 
created in my mind an interest in him. As soon as he 
was comfortably seated, he leaned forward, placed his el- 
bows on his knees and his head in both hands, and fixing 
his keen eyes upon me, never took them off until the 
sermon was ended. He was evidently interested ; his at- 
tention was riveted ; he felt the power of truth. 

The discourse was founded on John i. 29 : " Behold 
the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world/' 
As the subject was unfolded, and the preciousness of the 
sin-bearer was set before the audience, I watched the 
effect produced upon my singular hearer in front. Several 
times he manifested much emotion. The quivering lip, 
the falling tear, the bent and trembling form, all were 
signs of true penitence. He was evidently not aware of 
being noticed. The emotion he manifested indicated to 
my mind, that the spirit had wounded him, and he need- 
ed only the touch of the Great Physician to heal the 
wound. My soul was in agony for him. I knew just how 



>a 



84 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

to sympathise with him, and I longed to tell him so. I 

had passed through the same experience when a drunken 
sailor. I knew both his disease and the remedy, and 
longed to take him by the hand, and lead him to the feet 
of Jesus. 

As soon as I had pronounced the benediction, I hur- 
ried from the pulpit, and threading my way through the 
receding crowd, laid my hand upon his shoulder. He 
turned suddenly round. Our eyes met; his were red 
with weeping. I grasped his hand, and said: " Well, my 
friend, can you look to this Lamb of God who taketh 
away the sin of the world ?" He answered, with much 
emotion, " I don't know sir, about that ; it is not so easy." 
"But," I inquired, "do you desire to behold him as your 
Saviour? Are you walling to be saved by him, to have 
your sins blotted out ?" " Ah, sir/' he replied, "I wish I 
could : but I fear it is too late; I fear that Jesus Christ will 
not have anything to do with me, I am such a great 
sinner." 

As the crowd was passing out of the church, and he 
seemed to be anxious to go, I urged him to call and see 
me, on Monday morning. He promised to do so. True 
to his word, the next morning the old sailor walked into 
my stud}'. I Ic seemed feeble, and there was something in 
his eye that did not promise unmixed comfort. He had 
evidently taken his bitters that morning. Had he bid 
well to his cup in a parting glass? We shall see. 
nncn had just left me, who had called to inquire 
what they must do to be saved. They had been awaken- 
ed by last night's sermon, to a sense of their need of a 
iour. Turning to the old weather-beaten tar, I said, 
u Well, sir, how is it with you this morning ? Do you still 



SIGNS OF PENITENCE. 285 

fee* anxious about your soul ? You are drawing near to 
the grave, and will soon step into it. Are you prepared ?" 

He replied, " Yes, sir, you are right. I am nearing the 
grave, and I fear I am not prepared ; but what shall I do ? 
Do you think Christ will have anything to do with 
me ?" As he asked this question, he looked right into 
my eye, with the most intense earnestness, as if he felt 
that everything, temporal and eternal, depended upon the 
answer. I said, " Why do you ask that question ? Is 
there anything special in your case ?" u Yes, sir. I 
have been such a great sinner.'' " But you must remem- 
ber," said I, "that He is such a great Saviour. He is 
able and willing to save, even to the uttermost, all who 
come unto God through Him." He replied : " But, I am 
afraid I have gone too far. God has been good to me, 
and I have treated him shamefully. I fear he will not 
hear me." I said : " All this may be very true, and yet, 
Jesus bids you come to him. Why then are you afraid 
to come ?" He replied : " Ah, sir, you don't know 
how bad I have been. I have been at sea forty-three 
years, before the mast and abaft it, and have been in 
many perils and dangers; yet out of them all the Lord 
has delivered me." 

I then said to him : " Suppose you tell me a little of 
your history, that I may know what your course has been, 
and why you think your case is such a special one as to 
shut you out from the mercies of God ?" 

In reply, he related the following: 

"I was born in Brabant, France, in the year 1801. At an 
early age I went on the river, lightering. At eleven I was mer- 
cifully delivered from death by drowning while letting the water 
int<j a dock. A boat-hook in a friendly hand, was the means of 



2S6 rv \ EARS AMONG SAILORS. 

my deliverance. Soon after that I was brought again near to 

shipwreck, while carrying a cargo of timber for the first 

i. I have been shipwrecked three times. The first 

tim 2 when quite young, on the North Sea. The vessel went 

ashore among the breakers. I was washed overboard while gct- 

a boat re.ulv to launch. The boat's paddles, which I held 

in my hand, served to keep me afloat until some men on shore 

threw me a line, and hauled me to land. While in the water and 

expecting death, I called upon God, repeating a form of prayer 

which my mother had taught me, and he was pleased to save me, 

after being some hours in the water. At that time only two of 

re saved, out of a crew of eleven. 

"Once in the South Sea, while belonging to an American 

whale ship, I was one of a boat's crew of seven w T ho took the boat 

with a week's provisions, and deserted the ship. We were sixty 

in that open boat, and during the last twenty-six days of 

that time, not one of us had a drop of water to quench our thirst. 

After our provisions were exhausted, we lived on penguins and 

drinking their blood to assuage our thirst. 

"At another time I was cast away off Barnegat, and out of 

thirty lis, crew and passengers, only four of us were saved. 

I was picked up among the breakers, almost dead, after 

knocking about nearly three hours on the bottom of a boat. 

During all that time I prayed most fervently to God for deliver. 

and he was pleased to hear my prayer. I have fallen over- 

1 nine times, and have been often at death's door in various 

Dts, and other exposures, from all of which the good 

Lord delivered me. But what kills me is, that, after God had 

I my prayers and promises, I should turn round and curse 

I ;ot dry clothes on." 

When he had finished his recital, I said, " Sir, your case 

[ravated one. You deserve to suffer for your 

. but the Lord — who bore our sins — is rich in mercy 

to all who call upon him, and promises to save even 



SUCH A GREAT SINNER. 287 

the chief of sinners. Are you willing to give up all for 
Him, and repent of all your sins ?" To this he replied, 
" I am; and I do most sincerely repent, and am heartily 
sorry for all my transgressions.' ' " But," said I, " you 
must not only repent ; you must forsake every sin. You 
have been a drinking man. Are you willing to give up 
rum and sign the pledge ?" " I don't know about that," 
he answered, hesitatingly. " The doctors say it is as dan- 
gerous to knock off all at once, as it is to continue 
to drink. I will sign the pledge, if you will only let me 
taper off." " No sir," said I, " you must quit at once, 
and forever. Jesus Christ is the great Physician, and He 
requires you to avoid the very appearance of evil. 
Secure his favor first, take him for your friend. Are you 
willing to cast overboard everything that offends him ? 
to give up drinking, and every other sin ?" He promptly 
replied, with great firmness, " I will, sir, if I die by it !" 
and accompanied the promise by a heavy stroke of his 
stick on the floor, the concussion corresponding in time 
with the word " die," which he so emphatically uttered. 

I said to him, u Well done ! that is a good decision, and 
one which you will never regret. Now let us ask God 
to give you strength to perform that vow, for you can do 
nothing without him." He consented, and together we 
bowed, and offered up our hearts to that gracious God 
who hears and answers prayer. To my surprise, when I 
had closed, instead of rising from his knees, that hoary- 
headed sinner prayed fervently, and wept over his sins, 
crying, "God be merciful to me a sinner." The inter- 
view lasted fully an hour, and when he left it was with 
a firm determination to live no longer in sin, but to serve 
the Lord all the days of his life. 



Ill IV YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

At a subsequent meeting he was present, and rose to 

the prayers of the people of God. Those prayers 

were heard ; through grace he obtained the victory, 

though only after a severe struggle over his appetite for 

>ng drink ; and from that time he learned to walk 
humbly before God. Three months after, he was 
received into membership with the church, upon a pro- 

ion of his faith in Christ, and took his seat with God's 
people at the communion. 

Years have passed since that old man's heart was 
touched by the Spirit of the Lord. He seemed to grow 
younger, and more vigorous and active in the service of 
the Lord, continuing to be a devout and humble follower 
of Christ, spending and being spent in his service. Nor 
was there ever a more attentive hearer and doer of the 
Word in the congregation than that hoary-headed, white- 
bearded man of the sea. When speaking to others of 
the mercy of God in his behalf, in delivering him from 
the bonds of satan, which he often did, he attributed 
his L^rcat change, so far as human agency was concerned, 
to two things. First, the gentle touch on his shoulder, 
and the kind words of invitation addressed to him while 
1 is heart was tender, and at the very moment when he 
needed sympathy and direction. Secondly, to the visits 

ur church missionary, Mr. Gardner, who, as he said, 
followed him up, and came to his house to comfort and 
encourage him, while he was passing through the terrific 

Lggle, which resulted in his conquest over his passion 

for strong drink. He said, if the missionary had not fol- 

d him as he did, he would have been discouraged; 

but his visits and prayers gave him strength to resist the 

temptation of satan, and gave him confidence in Christ in 



HIS CAREER. 289 

the same proportion in which he lost confidence in 
himself. 

Once, in an experience meeting, he was heard to say : 

" I was a very wicked man ; I sometimes think, the most wick- 
ed man in the world, until last March a twelvemonth, when I 
went to church with my wife, and every word Mr. Jones said, 
went to my heart. The pastor wanted me to call upon him, but 
I said, you cannot do anything for me. I have committed every 
sin but murder, and I would have done that too, only I am too 
great a coward. When I was fighting old alcohol the devil was 
with me, and he shook me so that my poor wife thought he 
was shaking me to pieces. Now, I can lie down without hav- 
ing blue devils around me. I have angels around me now, and I 
advise any one present who is out of the ark of safety, to take my 
counsel and do as I did." 

On another public occasion he said: 

"Before I became a Christian, I had no friends, I had no 
clothes, I had no character. Now look at me ! I have friends, I 
have clothes, and thank God, by his grace I have now a good char- 
acter. I once tried to join the Odd Fellows, but they appointed a 
committee to inquire into my character, and finding I was a poor 
drunkard, they rejected me. I then tried the Free Masons. 
They too, inquired into my character, and blackballed me ; but 
when I went to Jesus, he took me just as I was. He did not 
ask my neighbors what they thought of me, or who I was, or 
how I lived, but he came to me and said, ■ Bisby, give me 
your old heart, give it to me just as it is ;' and I said, ' Here, 
Lord, take it ; and take me too, body and soul, and keep me, 
for 1 cannot keep myself And my friends, he did take me. 
He washed me from my sins in his own blood, and now he is 
my friend. If they who had been the friends of former years, 
saw me in the Street, they would take good care to pass by on the 
other side ; but now, if a gentleman sees me he takes me by the 

*3 



290 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

hand, and says, 'How do you do, Bisby? I am glad to sec 
you! How well you look.' Yes, friends, why should I not 
lock well? 1 am in want ^i nothing : Jesus provides everything 
for me, and I have a contented mind, which is a continual feast. 
Why, my poor wife prayed for me for fifteen years, and while I 
i drunkard, she was as thin as a pickled herring ; now she is 
as buxom and happy a woman as you can find. My home 
then was uncomfortable anil miserable ; now it is the happiest 
place on earth. Even my canary bird greets me with a song 
when I come home. Now, my friends, you see how much tem- 
perance and religion have done for me. All this arises from sign- 
ing the pledge and keeping it, by the grace of God. Go thou 
and do likewise I" 

Three years subsequent to his conversion, he was en- 
gaged as a watchman on board a barque which had lately 
returned from Africa. Her chief-officer and several of 
her crew were members of my church. During the voy- 
they had displayed their reverence for the word of 
God by making, in different parts of the vessel, perma- 
nent records of its controlling influence over their minds. 
Mr. J. S. Pierson, of the New York Bible Society, went 
on board the barque with a view to supplying her with 
the Scriptures. Bisby, learning his errand, and knowing 
that he would be interested, said, u Step this way, sir ! 
and I will show you something you never saw before/' I 
give the interview in Mr. Pierson's own words. He 
says: 

" I followed him to the forecastle, which in this case occupied 
the forward part of the h.mse on deck, and saw, what brought 
forcibly to mind the prophet's vision of the latter days, when 
'Holiness to the Lord,' is to be written on the bells of the 
horaefl ; a text, by . which may be legitimately extended 

in its application h are the burden-bearers of corn- 



THE FIRST STEP. 29 1 

jaerce en the a much as were, in those days, the long 

and horses, each with its tinkling bells, upon the 

lane. the beams and walls was covered 

. beautifully painted in large black letters on 

the white surface. Dver the door, on one side, was the text 

from John *L 37 il.m that cometh unto me I will in no wise 

and above tne opposite door, from John xvi. 33 : 4 In 

the world ye shall have tribulation ; but be of good cheer, I have 

overcome the world/ A.. \he head of one berth were painted 

the lines of the hymn : 

1 * I have an advu^te above, 
A friend before the throne of love ; 

and near another, in such a position as to be brought before the 

; of a person lying down, ■ I will lay me down and sleep, for 

1. Lord, only makest me to dwell in safety.' Ps. iv. 8. 

While on every side, stood out such texts as these : ' Let us run 

with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto J: 

the author and finisher of our faith;' Heb. xii. 1, 2. ' He loved 

..nd washed us from our sins in his own blood; ' Rev. i. 5. 

. I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world/ 

tt xxviii. 20. ' Pray without ceasing ; ' 1 Thess. v. 17. ' His 

mercy endureth forever :' Psalm cvi. 1. 'Men ought always to 

pray and not to faint ; r Luke xviii. 1. 'This is a faithful saying, 

and worthy of all acceptation, that Jesus Christ came into the 

I Tim. i. 15. ' For God so loved the 

world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believ- 

eth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life ;' John 

iii. 16. ■ Prepare to meet thy Go I : Amis :.. 12. ' It is the 

k,' he explained, 'of three of our men. An Englishman 

.man and a Dutchman ; members of the Rev. Mr. Jones' 

chu r I to the cr 

it is with sailors, when they are converted ; they 
their colors. Wh re born again. I orn with 

their mouths shuu T. me, when Mr. 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

I his grappling irons on me, throe years ago, thank 
1 had been a wicked sailor for forty-three years, and at that 

time ha J been on a bust for nearly five weeks. I don't suppose 
>rth of victuals during all that time. I was 
v near the end of the tether, and might have made away with 
myself at any moment 

"One Sunday evening I found myself seated in Mr. Jones' 
church, and it seemed as if he saw right into me, for he told me 
all that I was thinking about. Every word of his sermon just 
suited me ; and then, the next day, he didn't leave me to myself, 
but made one of his missionaries visit me every day. Ah, sir, 
I was a hard nut ! I can't help thinking now, how different it 
might have been with me if I had heard all this twenty years ago ; 
for, about that time, I met with tracts, and liked them so, that 
I gave a dollar to the man who brought them round ; and a gen- 
tleman gave me a Bible in my own lingo. I do suppose that if 
anybody had talked with me then, the devil would have had to 
leave me. Now I love to see men come around on such errands 
as yours. I often read a tract aloud myself to those rough fel- 
«n the Batter}', and I tell you, they listen and like them." 

He was subsequently employed by the Port Society in 
missionary work in the Fourth Ward of this city, where 
his past experience was of incalculable value. He had 
charge of the Mission on the corner of Dover and Water 
:ts. There, day by day, including the Sabbath, he 
might be seen at the door, looking out for the passers-by. 
His cheery face, and long white beard was an object of 
interest to the good, but a terror to the evil doer. He 
was so effective, and so blest in his work, that he suc- 
ceeded in closing up several rum-holes and in rescuing 
many of the poor magdalens of the neighborhood. He 
was as fearless as he was faithful. A pistol ball aimed at 
his head and imbedded in the door-post at his side, was 



MISSIONARY LABORS AND PERILS. 293 

allowed to remain, as an evidence of providential care 
over his life. He believed that he was immortal till his 
work was done. So nailing his colors to the mast, he 
continued until the Master called him home. 

As an illustration of the character of his piety, the 
strength of his convictions and the decision and prompt- 
ness with which he followed them, I quote again from his 
own lips : 

"On the nth of April, 1864, I was appointed to take charge 
of the Water Street Mission. It was then very cold, and I sat by 
the fire and smoked freely. Looking round I saw the room was 
full of smoke. I then said to myself, this looks more like a por- 
ter-house than the house of God. I will smoke here no more, 
but wait until I go home. I then went as usual behind the desk, 
to thank God for having spared me that morning. I did so for 
three days. On the fourth day, at noon, I went again behind 
the desk to thank God my Heavenly Father for his mercy in spar- 
ing me up to that time. The devil came in and said, ' Bisby, 
pray quick, and go home and have a good smoke/ Said I, ' Now 
Mr. devil, I've got ye !' Hooked heavenward and asked, earnest- 
ly, ' O God, please to banish the appetite for tobacco away from 
me. I know, O Lord, thou canst do it if thou wilt ; ' and it was 
done. I then went home, and taking the pipe from the mantle, 
showed it to my wife, saying, ' Do you see that ? ' I then raised 
the window and threw the pipe into the street. That was the last 
of it. I then destroyed the jar and the tobacco. From that day 
I saved my tobacco money till it amounted to twelve dollars. I 
bought a library with the money, and sent it to sea. On the 
fourth voyage it was the means of converting the captain, and 
awakening the whole ship's company. The books are still at 
sea. " 

I may add that a brief account of Bisby's conversion, 
which I wrote, was published some years ago by the 



294 FIFTY YEARS AMONG sailors. 

American Tract Society, under the title of " Sixty Years 
in Sin." He distributed hundreds of copies of it, in every 
direction, and received many letters, attesting its useful- 
I subjoin one of these, as a sample of the rest: 

Bisby — I am glad I can call you Brother in Christ. 

( face 1 knew you to be a drunken sailor, and a blasphemer. But 

sed be God, that He sent his beloved Son into the world to 

a sinner like you. I praise God that he has given you the 
privilege to tell the world what a blessed Saviour you have found. 
I received your little book, called 'Sixty Years in Sin/ which you 
sent me. After reading it, I gave it to a friend, who loaned it 
to others. Through the grace of God, it has been the means 
of the conversion of a mother of a large family, who had lost 
all respect for herself; so much so, that she would go 
out and drink at a public bar, and even sell her garments 
to get rum. After reading your book, she called to see me, 
and said, if she could see the original of that book, she 
would believe it. I told her I could show her your pic- 
ture, which I had. After looking at it for some time, she 

1 If it were possible for such a sinner to be converted, it is 
not too late for me to commence/ And she did commence that 
very night Through Divine strength she has so far resisted the 
temptation. Knowing that the prayers of those who ask never go 
unanswered, and hoping that you will go on in your good work, 
" I remain, in haste, A. N. M." 

Oh, how merciful is our Heavenly Father ! Surely this 
narrative illustrates and corroborates the word of the Holy 
Spirit, by Paul to Timothy: "It is a faithful saying, and 
worthy of all acceptation, that Jesus Christ came into the 
world to save sinners — even the chief/' 

;ain, how sovereign are I lis mercies, how absolutely 
independent of human purpose, yet not independent of 
human agency, for, u He sendeth by whom he will send/' 



ONE SMILE FROM JESUS, 295 

" He will have mercy upon whom he will have mercy." 
This dear old man of the sea for four years and a half stood 
at his post, a faithful soldier of Jesus Christ, and as a re- 
sult of his persevering effort, many a sailor and many an 
outcast of earth rejoices to-day in heaven, that Bisby was 
born again. After a painful illness of only a few weeks, 
he entered into the rest that remaineth for all the people 
of God, on the 6th of September, 1868, in the sixty-eighth 
year of his age. " Blessed are the dead that die in the 
Lord. Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from 
their labors, and their works do follow them." 

ONE SMILE FROM JESUS. 

Here is another trophy of grace. A young man who 
was invited by the missionary to attend divine service, 
came — heard — and was conquered. He subsequently 
wrote to me from Boston, saying: 

1 ■ When I first saw you I loved you ! How strange, that I, who 
was then so very wicked, should love a godly man ! You, dear sir, 
an ambassador of God, first alarmed me with your living volume of 
sacred truth, recording the death and resurrection of the blessed 
Saviour. I, who have been denied a home from childhood, 
through a wicked step-mother, who had been kicked and cuffed 
through the world, and robbed by soul-destroying rumsellers, re- 
ceived from you the first warning. You told me that I had a soul 
to be saved — that there is a God — just, but merciful. The world 
called me clever, but it was my wickedness. My friends in sin 
do not smile on me now, but what care I ? I would rather have 
one smile from Jesus, than all the smiles of mortal man. Pray, 
sir, that I may be strengthened in my faith. May the good God 
bless your efforts. Rest assured I am happy, and you have been 
the instrument. 



296 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

" Adieu, dear sir ! That eternal blessedness may be yours, is 
the prayer ofyOUT friend." 

In our Monday evening prayer-meeting, for Swedes, 
Danes, Norwegians and Finns, conducted at this time by 
Ola Helland, fifty-one Scandinavians were hopcfull) 
converted, and one hundred and twenty-nine, who went 
to sea before the work of divine grace culminated in their 
hearts, left us with the full purpose to seek until they 
found Christ precious to their souls. 

THE LAST CALL. 

A German sailor was converted on board the U. S. 
steamer ' Wabash/ in the early part of the war, and 
maintained the honor of his Divine Master on her berth- 
deck for the space of two full years. During all this time, 
such was his faithfulness, that he obtained the confidence 
of his brethren in the Lord, and by their suffrages became 
the acknowledged leader of the religious services, which 
were held on board. At the expiration of his term of 
enlistment, he was paid off, came on to New York, united 
with my church, and was subsequently employed by the 
Port Society, to labor as a missionary along the wharves 
and on board the vessels in port. 

In one of his visits, in the pursuit of his tract distribu- 
tion, he boarded the ship B , lying at the foot of 

Dover street, East river, where the following incident 
occurred, which he communicated to me. I record it 
here, because it illustrates so fully and remarkably the 
teachings of the Book of Proverbs, xxix. 1 : " He that is 
often reproved and hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly be 
destroyed, and that without remedy." 

He offered some of his tracts to the foremast men, 



THE LAST CALL. 297 

who unhesitatingly and gratefully received them. While 
he was speaking with them of their soul's eternal interests, 
the mate came fonvard, and he offered one to him also. 
But he refused it, at the same time giving utterance to 
horrible and blasphemous words, too filthy to be repeated. 
The missionary said to him kindly, " What would you do, 
sir, if God should answer that prayer of yours, and send 
you to hell ?" He replied, " I do not believe in hell ; all 
the hell there is, is upon earth." M If this is your belief, 
my friend/' responded our brother, " you must deny 
the word of God, for it is written, " The wicked shall 
be turned into hell." He still persisted in his unwilling- 
ness to believe either in a hell or the word which declared 
it, and added : " All you religious people are hypo- 
crites." 

The missionary replied, " I will admit, with sorrow, that 
some, who profess to be religious, are hypocrites. But 
I hardly expected to hear from the lips of a man of your 
age and experience, and apparent intelligence, such wicked 
assertions as you have made." He replied, " You are 

all a d d set of hypocrites, anyhow." I answered, 

" I do not think it best to discuss these matters, but I must 
say that all truths have their counterfeits. If there was 
no true religion, there would be none to imitate it. Men 
do not counterfeit that which is valueless. On that prin- 
ciple, therefore, if there are hypocritical professors, there 
must also be true professors. If there was no genuine 
money there would be no counterfeits. This I believe is 
an admitted fact." 

Unwilling to accept my argument, and unable to refute 

it, he changed the conversation, with an oath, and I left 

him, saying, as I did so, " I hope you will not learn the 
I3 * 



298 fifty YEARS AMONG sailors. 

truth about the existence of a hell, to your sorrow, and 
when it is too late. But I will pray for you." Two days 
after this incident, I went to the Water street Mission, 
intending to make this mate a subject of prayer. But 
judge of my astonishment ! I was told that the mate of 

the B was numbered with the dead, for whom we 

are forbidden to pray. I learned, that on the evening 
of the same day on which I had conversed with him, he 
having imbibed freely of strong drink, went on board the 
ship, and laid himself down on the stage, to sleep. That 
was about ten o'clock. 

At three A. M. he arose, intending to go to his room, 
but on crossing the after-hatch, over which a tarpaulin 
only had been carelessly thrown, he, supposing the hatch 
to be safely covered, stepped upon it. Fatal step ! The 
tarpaulin gave way under his weight, and he was precip- 
itated into the after-hold. He seemed to have struck his 
forehead on the upper corner of the kelson, as the entire 
flesh of his face, from above the eyes, was torn off, and 
folded back upon his chest. He was picked up and 
sent to the hospital. He lived but a short time, and 
then was ushered into the presence of the Great Judge, 
who rewards every man according to his deeds, whether 
they be good or evil. His last words were, " I am a 
dead man !" Poor fellow ! He was unexpectedly sum- 
moned to render up the account of all his wickedness, 
before Him whom he had blasphemed. But not without 
a friendly warning. M It is a fearful thing to fall into 
the hands of the living God I" Such warnings speak to 
us in thunder tones, saying to each one, " Be ye also 
ready, for in such an hour as ye think not, the Son of 
Man shall come." 



CHAPTER XIV. 

GREAT REVIVAL IN THE NAVY. 

The faithful Swede — Early life— Praying mother— United States navy 
— Sailors' Home— Sense of sin — Despair— The cleansing blood — Church 
life— U. S. steamer Ohio— Remarkable Providence — U. S. steamer North 
Carolina — What means this? — Prayer-meeting — Wild scene— The storm 
— A calm— Soul-sorrow— Fear of man gone— My diary — U. S. steamer 
Wabash— Early efforts —Chaplain Chase —Blessed awakening — Twenty 
seamen unite with the church — More converts — Lord's Supper — Strange 
contrast — Truth gaining headway — Notices of the press — Chaplain 
Stockbridge — Indescribable solemnity — Interest intensified — A remarka- 
ble meeting — " He saved me " — Done serving the devil — Tried to be 
an infidel — My dying mother's hand in the dark — Happy in him — Cove- 
nant faithfulness — A captain's experience — " The last time.'* 

The crowning success of this year was the establishing 
of a prayer-meeting on board the U. S. receiving ship 
North Carolina, from which resulted a very gracious 
and extensive revival of religion among the officers and 
men of our navy. The remarkable feature of this blessed 
work was, that it originated among the foremast men. A 
member of our Mariners' church, and three others, were 
the honored instruments, in the hand of God, of initiat- 
ing the movement. 

On the 1st of October, 1858, a Swedish sailor, a man- 
of-war's man, aged forty-seven, united with our church on 
a confession of his faith in Christ. He was a well-pro- 
portioned man, fully six feet in height, with a benevolent 

299 



300 FIFTH YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

countenance, a clear blue eye and a kindly expression. 
We were all delighted with his genial, social qualities. 
He was much in my family, with my wife and children, 
and though we all loved him, and felt the value of his ac- 
ion to our church, not one of us could have predicted 
that he was destined to exert so world-wide an influence. 
He recounted to us much of his early life, a brief abstract 
of which will be necessary to introduce him to the reader, 
as he is to occupy so large a space in the history of the 
great Revival. His name was John A. Morris. He 
was born in 1S11. His mother, although not then 
a professed believer, endeavored to instil into his mind 
the principles of virtue and morality, which, he said, 
produced no immediate effect. When she was on her 
death-bed, having becomea child of God some time before, 
she prayed earnestly, and expressed great solicitude for 
her wandering son. A pious sister, also, joined her 
prayers with those of the mother, on behalf of her erring 
brother. 

At the age of sixteen, after completing his course at 

school, he obtained the consent of his parents to go to sea. 

Here he soon forgot the home teachings, and in three 

years had become a hardened sinner. He continued in 

his evil ways, growing worse and worse, until 1853, when 

he returned to the United States, and took board at the 

V York Sailors' Home. Here he attended the morn- 

and evening prayers, and became somewhat serious, 

but was not willing to give up his sins. His dissipated 

habits brought on a severe sickness — during which he 

distressed on account of his disobedience to God. lie 

say 

' I was seized with remorse and despair, thinking that there 









THE FAITHFUL SWEDE. 30I 

could be no mercy for such a sinner as myself. But light broke 
in on my soul. I thought of the blood of Christ, which could 
wash away all sin. I resolved therefore to perish, if I must perish, 
at the foot of the Cross. I commenced praying for the forgiveness 
of my sins, and cast myself wholly on Christ. I soon found 
peace and joy in believing. Nearly a year after this I went to 
New Orleans, and entered into business. Being unsuccessful, I 
returned to New York, fell into bad company, and suffered Satan 
again to have dominion over me. But having once tasted the 
sweets of the gospel, and felt the love of Christ, it was impossible 
for me to continue in sin ; so, I again, with prayers and tears, 
came to my long-suffering Master, was received, and found rest to 
my soul. In the same year I re-enlisted in the Navy, and went to 
the China seas, from whence I returned to New York again in 
1858." 

Of his course and manner of life, during that cruise of 
three years, he says but little. He mentioned to some 
Christian friends that he desired to join the church. But 
Satan suggested that he was not fit to do so. By the 
grace of God, however, he was able to repel the sugges- 
tions of the tempter, and cast himself unreservedly on 
Christ. He at once commenced laboring zealously for 
the benefit of others. Being naturally of a modest dispo- 
sition, he shrunk from anything like ostentation. Yet 
when necessary, he could be aggressive, and in the main- 
tenance of the right, as bold as a lion. 

After a few weeks of sweet social and spiritual com- 
panionship, he felt it to be his duty to go to sea again. 
He was unwilling to enter the United States Navy in New 
York, as he was desirous of avoiding the necessity of be- 
ing sent on board the receiving ship North Carolina, 
for the reason, that she had already some six hundred re- 
cruits on board, and at best was far from being a comfort- 



Ill TV YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

able ship. After consulting with me, he decided to go on 
t i Boston and ship there. He left US on the 1st of No- 
vember. On the 4th he re-entered the Navy for the term 
of three years, and on the 5th, went on board the receiving 
ship Ohio. On the 13th, he wrote me as follows: 

" U. S. Receiving Ship North Carolina. 
11 My Dear Pas/or. — It will undoubtedly surprise you very 
much to find me addressing you from so near home, when you 
have all reason to suppose me in Boston. By re-entering the 
. in Boston I had expected to join some ship fitting out there. 
But I had hardly taken up my quarters on board the Ohio, 
bed >re a report was circulated that we were all to be transferred 
to New York. On the 10th the Commodore of the Yard came 
on board and confirmed the report. On Thursday, the nth, we 
left for this ship, and arrived here yesterday morning. 

44 hew sad I have felt since I left you last week ! To leave 

such exalted religious privileges as I enjoyed while with you on 

. to come on board a crowded guard-ship, where it is very 

difficult to find a place for morning and evening devotions, is in- 

. a sore trial, for this ship is crowded with men. Among the 

hundred and thirty men who left Boston in the draft in which 

J ime, there was not one who knew the sacred name of the 

Saviour but to use it in blasphemy. Last Sunday, on board the 

Ohio, I was very sad. The weather being stormy, the chaplain 

attached to her did not come on board, and so we had no Divine 

u ft In body I was on board the Ohio, but in spirit I was 

with the Lord and his people in New York. 

f came here, I have found two Christian brethren, a 

ist and an Episcopalian, so I expect to spend the time here 

.y than if I had been left alone among the ungodly 

1. The noise is such that it is difficult to keep one's 

Our brother's active mind was not slow to take in the 



WHAT MEANS THIS? 303 

providential teachings of the unexpected return to the 
ship he had been so anxious to avoid. His question there- 
fore was, "What means this? God has something for 
me to do, or he would not have sent me here." The 
chief object with him, was to determine what was to be 
done, and how to do it. He consulted with the two 
brethren mentioned above, with reference to the re-es- 
tablishing of a daily prayer-meeting, if a place suitable 
for it could be obtained. Having been shipmates with 
the executive officer, Lieutenant Williamson, he made a 
formal request for permission to hold such a meeting, and 
to have a suitable place provided. Both these requests 
were readily granted, and the forward part of the Orlop- 
deck set apart for that purpose. 

In a few days all necessary arrangements were made, 
and the great revival of the nineteenth century on the sea 
was begun. It is proper to state here that there had 
been at intervals religious services held on board the 
North Carolina, for years past. I had myself been in 
the habit of visiting her on the Sabbath, and on week 
days, holding religious services, preaching and praying 
as opportunity offered, as far back as 1855. Rev. Mr. 
Burnett, of Brooklyn, had also conducted services for 
some time on Sabbath afternoons, the chaplain of the 
ship performing his duties in the forenoon. Some Bap- 
tist brethren had occasionally turned their attention to the 
spiritual wants of the crew ; but at the time our brother 
Morris went on board, there seems to have been a singu- 
lar absence of any week-day service, although the number 
of men on board was between seven and eight hundred. 
In a letter written later, he gave me a detailed account 
of the origin of the blessed work. He says : 



304 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

"It is the Lord's work ; we are but instruments in his hands. 

When I came on board the 'North Carolina/ there were no 

the preaching service on the Sabbath. I 

you know, joined the people of God. I had spent a 
n on shore, rich to me in spiritual comforts. My heart 
warm with my first love, and when I got on board I felt that 
I had new, and till then, untried duties to perform. I commu- 
nicated the feeling to Brothers Staigg and Hilkins, and pointed 
out the necessity o( such a meeting for prayer, and proposed to 
ask Lieut. Williamson to have a place assigned us for this pur- 
pose. 

"Two or three days passed without anything definite being 
led upon. In the mean time another Christian man came 
on board, from the Baptist church. The brother who accom- 
panied him, hearing of our plan to start a prayer-meeting, urged 
us to go forward at once. I applied to the chaplain, Rev. Mr. 
k bridge, for such assistance as we might need. The next 
day he laid the matter before the authorities, and we were enabled 
lit that very evening. But for several evenings I labored 
single-handed. It was not until several meetings had been held, 
in which my own voice was the only one heard, that brother 
it pleasure and comfort, gave me his assistance, 
in carrying on the exercises. He and I were the feeble instruc- 
ts, in God's hand, of sustaining the meetings until he was 
pleas ttd other and abler workers from the shore, to culti- 

vate his vineyard. n 

On the 2 ist of November, the brethren took possess- 
ion of the Orlop-deck, and held the first service. The 
meeting having been published among the men, a 
number of them came together who were not 
inclined to anything devotional or religious, and who 
endeavored by noises and by scoffs and ridicule, to pre- 
vent the service from proceeding. There was " confusion, 
worse confounded." Some of the brethren were intimi- 



A WILD SCENE. 305 

dated, and felt that it would be impossible in such a Babel 
to carry on the prayer-meeting. One of them suggested 
to Brother Morris, that he had better not attempt to offer 
prayer. Instead of yielding, however, he dropped upon 
his knees and began to pray. The effect of that prayer 
on the howling multitude of infuriated men was like that 
of the Saviour's word to the waves of Galilee. " There 
was a great calm." So that Morris not only finished his 
prayer, but rising from his knees, made an address to the 
men, many of whom were subdued, and from that hour 
the success of the effort was assured. 

In my journal I find a record of my visit to the ship, 
on the 25th of November, four days after the inception of 
the work. I found the meeting then in full blast. On De- 
cember 1st, Morris wrote to me again. Speaking of the 
crew of the ship, he says : 

" One would think, judging from their conduct, that they live 
only to eat, drink and sleep. A great many of them are occu- 
pied in reading novels, and other bad and immoral books, or 
waste their precious time in trifling and wicked amusements. 
Cursing, profanity, and blasphemy are the order of the day. 
From morning till night my ears are continually assailed, and my 
heart pierced by hearing the holy and sacred name of me 
Saviour taken in vain, abused, and desecrated. Satan does in- 
deed reign with great power on board this ship ; especially is his 
spirit manifest in a few young men who have made it their busi- 
ness to come down to the meeting we hold every evening, to 
scoff, to ridicule, and to annoy us. This does not, however, dis- 
courage us in the least. We have resolved, in the strength of 
the Lord, whom we serve, to continue our meeting while we 
remain together in this ship. 

"I regret that two of our brethren can take no active part 
in the exercises on account (as they tell me) of their de- 



306 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

ncy in the English language. They have, however, shown 

their colors. They have come out boldly and professed them- 

- Christians. As for myself, I feel — blessed be the Lord — • 

that the annoyance 1 have just spoken of has been the means, in 

rod, of taking away from me all fear of man, in the 

■nuance of my duties as a Christian. Our meetings are not 

si i numerously attended as they were at the beginning : but among 

who now attend, there are many serious, and two I have 

■n to believe are under conviction of sin. One of the last 

mentioned, a Norwegian, I think, from the conversation I had 

with him last night, begins to entertain a good hope in Christ." 

Under date of December 2nd, I find in my diary the 
following entry : 

"Visited receiving ship in company with two other brethren. 

Led the prayer-meeting on the Orlop-deck. Between forty and fifty 

of the crew present. A blessed meeting. The Lord was with 

us : I spoke to them of the influence of seamen in the past, and 

Kited them all to Christ. On this day, while the worK of the 

Lord is progressing so prosperously on board the receiving ship 

here, other representatives of my ministry, I have reason to believe, 

are holding up the banner of Christ on board the Wabash, off 

the Golden II«>rn. A private letter received from Constantinople 

1 We have just had a visit from the U. S. steam frigate 

Wabash, a splendid specimen of naval architecture, admired 

by everybody. The Sultan went on board yesterday, remained 

md expressed himself highly delighted with her; 

'but,' he adds, 'the Wabash, has something more to rccom- 

1 her than simply her material beauty and fitness. Never, 

ibly, was there SO much piety afloat on a ship-of-war. I do 

know how many of her officers and men are religious persons, 

but I believe a goodly number ; and finer officers and men I have 

-I. I [er government is all paternal ; scarcely even's any 

punidim nt needed on bond, among six hundred sailors.'" 

other sources, that the first lieutenant of the 



U. S. SHIP WABASH. 3°7 

Wabash conducts the meetings, and that there are seventy or 
more converted men among the ship's company. 

How much of this, under God, is due to the Mariners' 
church, I am not prepared to say. But in looking back 
over my Journal for 1856, I find that some goodly seed 
was sown on her berth-deck, and among her officers. 
On the 13th of November, 1856, I made the following 
entry in my diary : 

"Visited the U. S. steamship Wabash, and distributed a 
large number of tracts and sailors'" magazines, all of which were 
greedily devoured by the crew — and a demand made for more, 
in other languages than the English." The next day I scattered 
some thousands of pages of printed matter, among them copies 
of the l Convict Ship, ' and some Portuguese, German and Italian 
Testaments, all of which were thankfully received. Many of the 
men ask for tracts in preference to the books. I found it difficult 
to converse with the men on the subject of personal religion, on 
account of the band, which was rehearsing for the afternoon. At 
intervals, however, the members of the band ran out of the ranks, 
to ask for books or tracts in their own languages. I supplied 
them in German and Italian, and they were received with expres- 
sions of sincere gratitude. 

On the 19th, I took on board one hundred bound vol- 
umes and one hundred copies of the Bible Society's Records. 
Rev. Mr. Chase, the chaplain, received me very kindly, as did 
also Mr. Sinclair, the first lieutenant. I also scattered a large 
quantity of papers among the men, who retired into out-of-the- 
way places and commenced reading them immediately. I spoke 
a word for my Master and for their souls, as I had opportunity, 
and left the seed to germinate under the vivifying power of the 
Spirit of life, who alone can move the obdurate heart of the 
Sinner. 

On the 9th of December, visited the North Carolina. Brothers 



30S FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

Byrne and Gardner accompanied mc. Some forty persons arose 
for prayer, twenty-five or thirty testified to the benefits their souls 
had received from the meetings. Eighteen had already confe 
the Lord [esus Christ among their shipmates, before we went on 
;. At the close oi the meeting the number of believers had 
ised, 

"On the i 2th, I preached on board to about seven hundred 

men from Matt. iv. 19 : ' Follow me, and I will make you fish* 

fmen.' Blessed season ! The divine Spirit was present. 

14 On the 14th, sixteen of the crew sent an application to our 
church to be admitted to membership. One man told me that 
he was pricked to the heart by the sermon I preached on Sabbath 
last, and that he had given himself to Christ. Another spoke of 
the wonderful change in the conduct of the men, as contrasted 
with that of a week or two ago. Yellow-covered literature had 
given way to the Bible and Tracts, and other good books. On the 
15 th, twenty-one of the seamen were examined for membership 
by our church council, and received, on a confession of their faith 
in Christ. I addressed nearly a hundred and fifty, on the berth- 
deck, for an hour, this afternoon, many of them very serious. 
On the 1 6th, I conducted a meeting in the fore-peak. Fifteen 
sailors gave their experience. These men are soon to be drafted, 
and will be assigned to different ships and scattered in different 
of the world to work for Christ. 
1 the 19th, in the afternoon, preached a short sermon on 
board the receiving ship from Heb. xii. 1, and administered the 
Lord's Supper to twenty-two of the men, four of whom I baptiz- 
ed. The service was on the gun-deck, in the presence of several 
hundred men. It was a most solemn scene 1 How strange it 
ind amid great guns, and small arms, and adminis- 
ter ' ient of the Prince of Peace ! Many a hardy, weath- 
er-! x-aten face was bedewed with tears. I saw a number holding 
their caps before their faces to hide their emotions. At the close 
of the meeting several others came forward and expressed the 
wish to be examined lor membership, that they might cast in 



NOTICE OF THE PRESS. 309 

their lot with us. An eye-witness of this scene, speaks of it thus : 
* The services were in striking contrast with the bristling cannon 
and the many other weapons of destruction all around. A very 
large proportion of the eleven hundred recruits was present, and 
the earnest attention that they gave to the impressive and solemn 
scene, with the tears that coursed down many a bronzed cheek, 
as appeals to them as sinners were made, and the memories of 
early home and maternal love and teaching, were brought to their 
remembrance, proved that the truth was finding a lodgment in 
their hearts. " 

When the communion service was over, a large con- 
course of men remaining behind, and appearing anxious, 
Captain Bartlett, of Plymouth, a converted ship- master, 
made an affectionate and touching address to them, re- 
minding them of their earlier days and their mother's care 
and instruction. Many of them were greatly affected, 
and will not soon forget the impression made on their 
hearts by his simple appeal. Another who was present 
on that occasion thus describes the meeting in one of 
the religious weeklies : 

"The daily prayer-meeting on board the receiving ship, 
North Carolina, has been greatly blessed, some of the converts 
having expressed a desire to unite with the Mariners' church. 
The Council met on board the ship on Wednesday last, to ex- 
amine them touching their Christian experience ; and though 
man cannot see into the heart, we could not but feel that it was 
the work of the Holy Spirit. The experiences of some of those 
hardy sailors, representing different nationalities, Norwegian, 
Danes, Swedes, Finns, Germans, French, &c, were very touching. 

" Arrangements had been made with the commandant of the 
yard and the captain of the ship, to celebrate the Communion, 
and receive the men into the church last Sabbath afternoon on 
board the vessel. The pastor and Council, with some of the 



310 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

>f the ship, and lulics and gentlemen from the shore, 
mbled on the fun deck — where seats were arranged around 

a table, on which was placed the Communion service. Rev. 
[ones conducted the services, which were throughout 

mn and impressive ; the time, the place, the occasion, all 

spired to rentier it a scene of unusual interest. Twenty- 
three seamen to be received into the church on board a man-of- 
war was a novelty indeed. The candidates being commended 
to God in prayer, the elements were distributed by two mem- 
bers of the Council ; and as the services progressed, the tears 
might be seen trickling down the cheeks of those hardy seamen. 
4 ' One feature was peculiar. As the pastor read the confes- 
sion of faith, at the close of each article, there was a hearty 

at of aye ! from the candidates. Captain Bartlett of Ply- 
mouth made a few remarks, stating that he had been in the 
habit of conducting religious services on board his own ship for 
more than sixteen years ; but he had never before witnessed so 
interesting a scene as this. Too much praise cannot be award- 
ed to the Rev. Jos. Stockbridge, the chaplain, and the officers 
of the ship, for their kind attentions. 

i o or three Sabbaths after this, twelve of the crew were 
examined, and received into the First Baptist Mariners' church 
in Cherry street, by the pastor, Rev. Ira Steward. All these con- 

3 related their experience in the presence of nearly eight hun- 
dred men, Commodore Breese and other officers, with church 
members from the shore among them. The Lord's Supper was 
administered by the pastor, assisted by Rev. J. Stockbridge, the 
chaplain of the ship. 

In describing the prayer-meeting which preceded this Sabbath 
id communion, a gentleman who was present from the 
shore wrote as follows : 

" We went on board at two bells in the Dog watch (5 P. M.) 

hurried down to the lower deck. The place was stowed 

it was with difficulty that we could get down the hatch- 

m however was given, and we edged our way 



INDESCRIBABLE SOLEMNITY. 311 

along to a seat near the preacher's stand. The service had 
begun ; the singing was exceedingly impressive. The prayer 
being ended, the preacher announced his theme : ' This is a 
faithful saving, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus 
came into the world to save sinners/ It was a short, earnest, 
timely discourse, worthy of the theme and of the occasion. 
The faithful saying ! We hope some received it that night. 

' ' After the sermon and the singing of a hymn, followed by 
several short prayers by the sailors, the chaplain of the ship 
arose and said, addressing the sailors, it was expected that twelve 
of those now present, would on the following day — Sabbath — make 
a public profession of their attachment to Christ He desired 
therefore, that the remaining time allotted to the service might 
be occupied in the relating of the religious experience of those 
who were expecting, on the morrow, to make a public profession 
of religion, so that their shipmates and the friends from the shore 
might hear the reasons for their hope. One after another arose 
in rapid succession, and related, each in a few words, what God 
had done for his soul. This part of the exercises was intensely 
interesting. The deepest of all the impressions was this one, 
that these men had been taught by the Holy Spirit. There was 
room for no manner of doubt for a moment, that these unlet- 
tered men had been led by a divine hand, in a way which they 
knew not. The hour fled on golden wings. A dense mass of 
seamen were sitting, and behind them, other masses standing in 
rows behind rows as far as the eyes could see. One from the 
shore, when all were through, struck up the hymn : 

1 Say, brothers, will you meet us, 
On Canaan's happy shore ;' 

followed by the sailors in that beautiful refrain sung in the tune 
so well known : 

1 By the grace of God we'll meet you, 
Where parting is no more/ 



31 2 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

This chorus was like the sound of many waters. It was perfectly 
ming. The tears were streaming from all eyes, and a 

past all description sat upon every countenance. In 
the prayers which were offered by these devout seamen, continual 
nee was made to those offered for them by their Christian 
friends on shore, their worthy Chaplain, Rev. Mr. Stockbridge 
having assured them that many were praying for them all ovei 
the country. Here, one arose and remarked that all that had 
been said was true. There had been here the representatives of 
the religious press, and two are here to-night, and they have 
related what they have seen, and it has gone out on the wings 
of the wind, and been copied into other religious journals, and 
the whole land is vocal with the news that the Lord is pouring 
out his Holy Spirit upon the North Carolina, and millions of 
prayers go up to heaven for a blessing upon her. 

" 'The noonday prayer-meetings in the city all remember you 

in prayer. They remember you in other cities. And now/ said 

the ^-peaker, ' if I were to ask you how many of you desire to be 

prayed for in the daily prayer-meetings of New York, Boston 

and Philadelphia, Baltimore, Cincinnati and New Orleans, and 

all other places where daily prayer-meetings are held, I doubt 

not, many hands would be raised to signify that desire/ Here 

iker paused, but not intending to put the question. 

'Try it, brother !' said some one behind him. "Try it !' said 

'Well, I will/ said the speaker; ( I will try it. 

A- many of you as wish for all daily prayer-meetings on shore to 

for you, please raise the right hand/ We stood where we 

could see, and we think we cannot be mistaken when we say 

that at least three hundred hands were raised. 

''What a solemn moment ! we hope that some went on their 
km . lor themselves that night. One man said, in the 

course of the evening, that the first time he felt an awakening, 
. Mr. Jones, one night asked those to raise their hand 
who wished \<>v prayer, and he raised his. lie had come down per- 
fectly uij. Mr. Jones had said: 'Some of you, per- 



A REMARKABLE MEETING. 313 

haps, have had a praying mother. ' That was the arrow by which 
he was deeply pierced. He had a praying mother. He was in a 
moment thrown into a state of agony. He ran below, and hid 
himself in a coal bunker, and there poured out his soul to the God 
of his dear mother to have mercy on him. He cast himself upon 
the Saviour at once, and there, on the spot, he found mercy. " 

Such testimonies might be very largely multiplied, 
but I forbear. On Thursday, the 23rd, I conducted the 
prayer-meeting, in the fore part of the Orlop-deck; the 
place was literally thronged. Between one and two 
hundred were present. The interest was intensified. It 
was one of the most remarkable meetings I ever had the 
privilege of attending, one of the blessed scenes of earth. 
As I sat in the midst of these rough and neglected sailors, 
I could not help thinking of the goodness of our Lord in 
bringing to a knowledge of the truth, so many of them, 
who but a few weeks, nay, days ago, had no hope, and 
were without God in the world, but who now had become 
as little children, and were rejoicing in the redemption 
of their souls, through faith in Christ. The presence and 
power of God were displayed in a very wonderful man- 
ner, as shown in the following notes, taken at the time ; 
all of which illustrate the illuminating power of the Spirit 
in the heart, and his guiding hand in the tongue. James 
C was the first to relate his experiences. He said : 

" Shipmates, I want to say a few words. Jesus has done great 
things for. me, and I have determined to serve him from this time 
forth ; so that, if my body should go down under the waters, my 
soul may go aloft. I felt what that captain said. My mother 
once asked me to pray. I could not then ! but oh, shipmates, I 
can pray now ! The more I pray and read, the more I love to 
do it. Oh, come to Jcsu ; ! He died for us. He will save us. 
14 



314 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

I was the worst of sinners He saved me. If I had a thousand 
hearts and souls I would give them all to him. My father I 

hope is in heaven —he went down at sea — I am bound to travel to 
him. I, too, may go down at sea, but I hope to meet him. I 
wish some of you would begin to serve Christ. Don't put it off. 
Come to Jesus and say — 

" ' Here. Lord, I give myself away, 
Tisall that I can do.'" 

William P — followed, and said : 

n Iam glad to see so many here to-night. The first night I 
came down here, I came to skylark. I stood back to make fun, 
but some one was wanted to start a hymn, so I came forward and 
sang.for them. I did not come again for a week. When Mr. 
Byrne came I was present and was touched in the heart. I heard 
his experience. I felt that I was a sinner. I went to my ham- 
mock in great distress. Mr. B — told us to read the 3rd chapter 

' 'hn. I prayed in my hammock until I fell asleep. In the 
morning I read that chapter, and found that I must be born 
again, and went to God in prayer. He forgave me my sins, 
and I advise you to come to him." 

John M. F said : 

u The devil has had control of me long enough, and now I in- 
tend to serve another Master. This is no hasty decision, ship- 
mates. I have considered it some time ; I have resolved to curse 
and swear no more. I have done enough of that work, and now 
I mean to serve God, and want you all, shipmates, to pray for me." 

Prayer was then offered by Dc M and others. 

Samuel A. D next rose and said : 

"I am not ashamed now, to confess Christ before men. I 
have felt for some time, the necessity of serving God, and 
acknowledging Him before men, but I was ashamed. I now 



TRIED TO BE AN INFIDEL. 315 

glory in the privilege of facing men for Christ. I was one of the 
worst of sinners — the very worst. I attended some of these meet- 
ings, and began to think. I went to bed — but could not 
sleep. In the morning I lashed up my hammock, and then 
came down here, and hid myself, and fell on my knees to God. 
I could not help crying. I looked back on my past life, and 
for thirty years I can say I have not had one happy day. I 
could not bear to be alone ; I wanted company. But now, I 
love to be alone, because I can think and pray to God, when by 
myself. " 

Jacob L said : 

" It was a happy day for me when the Lord directed my steps 
on board this vessel. For I have more pleasure than ever in 
my life before. I have time to think here. Some of you think a 
man cannot be religious on board a ship. But this is the very 
place to be religious. When on shore I have gone to church 
and heard a minister preach until I have cried over my sins, 
and then have gone right out to a grogshop, and drowned it all 
in rum. There are no rum-shops to go to here. I can get rum, 
but I will not. Jesus is now my Master, and I have done serv- 
ing the devil ; he is a hard task-master. I thought about my 
mother, when that captain was speaking on Sunday of mothers 
in heaven, but I never knew mine. I hope she is in heaven, 
and now looks down upon her repentant son, who is striving for 
heaven. Jesus will take me there, I know." 

Thomas A said : 

"When first convicted, I could not sleep at night. I have 
been fifteen years at sea, in all kinds of vessels — the slave trade 
among the rest But I hope God will forgive me. I have come 
out, and I mean to serve God." 

Henry C said : ' ' I went to sea against the wishes of my 

parents. I wanted to see the world, and I wandered from shore 
to shore, but was not happy. I read infidel books and scoffed at 
the Bible. 1 tried to believe it untrue, but with all my efforts did 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

n >t succeed At length my parents died. I had foara of death, 
but tried to shake them off ; and until last Sabbath, was as wild 
. er. Men talk about conscience. It is all very well, but 
for me, conscience only troubled me after the deed was done. 
It troubled me too late; it did not act as a preventive. What 
Captain Bartlett said went to my heart. He spoke from the 
heart, even to my heart. My mother is dead. I know she is in 
heaven, for she loved the Lord. The question arose in my mind, 
ill I see her?' I wept, and thought I would come down 
t« i this spot and pray to God to forgive me. I came down here 
and hid myself away. A heavy weight was on my soul. I 
prayed, too, in my hammock, and the weight was removed. I 
have now an inward joy of heart in believing in Christ/ 

4 ' The next speaker said : ' I have a word to say. I tried to 
speak before, but could not. I now tell you what the Lord has 
done for my soul/ He then described his conviction and con- 
version. 

1 ' Nicholas M , aged twenty-six, said : 1 1 was born in 

Germany, and I have been twelve years at sea. I came down 

lure several times and tried to talk, but could not. I felt as I 

had never felt before in my life. I am a great sinner. I would 

not read the Bible or other good books. I would not go to 

meeting ; but when I saw one of these brothers, I called out, 

' There goes one of the North Carolina's missionaries !' But it 

did not hurt them, nor do me any good ; and when I had 

it, something struck my mind that I was wrong. These 

good men, consistent men. I went to my hammock and 

i God, and thought of all my life. Now I mean to 

1/ 

" Charles J said : ' Shipmates, when I first came to these 

meetings, I « ame to mock; but mocking at religion did not 
help me. I felt very bad, sometimes so bad that I thought if I 
continued long in that state, I should go mad. I tried to be an 
infidel, and said the Bible was a humbug. But a tract was put 
into my hands ; the title was, ' My spirit shall not always strive/ 



BROKEN PROMISES. 317 

I read it with some interest. I felt that if I could come now, 
there was some hope for me. I had been at war with God all 
my life-time, insulting and blaspheming my Redeemer, God, 
who died for me. It is a hard thing, shipmates, to fight against 
God Almighty. I felt this, and I prayed to God (if it were pos- 
sible) to save me. He heard my prayer. Now I am willing to 
do good to any man. Some say that religion is a humbug, and 
religious men, enthusiasts, who make a splurge for a time and 
then fall back. I am now speaking to a hundred and fifty men. 
I am drafted to the Saint Louis, and you can watch me, 
and see whether it is only an affair of to-day. I mean to serve 
God at sea. They who say a man cannot serve God at sea are 
wrong. It can be done ; do it at once. I have seen the folly of 
putting it off. The third mate of a ship I was in used to promise 
God that he would serve him. Once a man fell overboard, — the 
boat was lowered ; the third and second mates were in her. 
They could not find the man. On her return to the ship the 
boat was capsized, and all the crew were in the water a long 
time, and were at length delivered. The third mate promised 
God he would serve him. For three days he was serious ; after 
that he relapsed, and was worse than ever. When we arrived in 
India, he went on shore, was taken sick of the cholera, and died 
in eight hours, without any one to say a word to him about his 
soul." 

1 ' Frederick N said, in broken language : ' I have often 

felt an interest in my soul, and when I have wanted to go to 
church my shipmates would ask me to go with them and get 
grog ; so my good feelings were smothered. I had a pious 
mother. Her last words to me, when dying, were, ' Fred, do 
not forget Jesus Christ' But I forgot her counsel. Last Sunday 
I came down among these Christian men, and now I have a 
pleasure in talking about God. I want you all to pray for me/ 

"Another, whose name I did not catch, said: 'I want to say 
that I have served the devil long enough. I am now trying to 
serve Christ, and I am twice the man I was. ' 



318 I'll TV YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

- Henry L E said : f My mother died when I was three 

n old I do not know much about her; but I know she 
ed her dying hand on my head, and prayed the Lord Jesus 
to keep me. Lately 1 have been concerned for my soul, though 
before. When I felt my sins, I went down into the fore- 
hold, and prayed to God to drive the devil out of me/ 

" Richard H said : ' I feel myself a very wicked sinner, 

and I prayed to God to take away my sins/ 

Another said : ' Last night I could not speak to you at all. 
But God has done great things for me. I am only twenty-two 
years old, yet have been in all kinds of sin/ 

1 'James B. L also related his experience, which was full 

of interest and in harmony with the testimony which he had 
given before. 

"Richard M. C , ship's yeoman, said: 'Joy in heaven 

over one sinner that repenteth ! Is it possible that the bright 
angels in that better world are interested in my salvation? Then 
I believe there is hope for me. O brethren, pray for me ! 
Pray that my burden may be removed. I once sailed under 
these colors, and I want to return/ 

"At the conclusion of his remarks, prayer was offered by Charles 

( . ( ' , and Thomas S , second. Luke R related 

xperiences, and then William P offered a prayer. After 

this Thomas W. S spoke as follows : 

" ' Shipmates, I rise to say to you that I do not want you to call 
me a Christian, because I am not one ; but I do desire to be- 
come one. I have long been under conviction, and have often 
tried to pray ; blit the devil comes and steals away my thoughts. 
times f kneel to pray, and the first thing I know my 
thoughts are in Philadelphia or Boston, or somewhere else. Yet 
I do want to be a Christian. pray for me ! If I am a Chris- 
tian, I want to be a whole one/ 

" At this point, a quarter before eight o'clock, having continued 
the meeting two hours and three-quarters, I closed up with a 
few remarks, d oology and benediction. As I was leaving, Wit 



HAPPY IN HIM. 319 

liam W , a young German, was sitting in the corner, weep- 
ing. He said, ' My heart is full ; I cannot speak. O pray for 
me ; I want to come to Christ ; but can find no peace.' Ten 

feet from him sat John D , his face buried in his hands. He 

came down to mock, and is now broken-hearted, and wished 
me to pray for him. As I was approaching the gangway to leave 
the ship, a hand grasped mine in the dark and drew me aside. 
A voice proceeding from a mass of black bushy hair, said, 
1 Brother Jones, I was a member of the Baptist church in 
Charlestown, Mass., some time ago, but have been for years a 
backslider. I came here in the Niagara's draft. I went down 
to the meeting with the brethren, and I have found the Saviour 
precious to my soul, and willing to receive me. I am happy in 
Him. Pray for me that I may be kept steadfast.' His name is 
Henry P ." 

Thus ended one of the most interesting evenings I ever 
spent in my life, and one that may, by the grace of God, 
have as important a bearing on the happiness of the bless- 
ed in the eternal world, as any I have attended during 
my whole ministry. It revealed to me the fact that 
some twenty-six or thirty more than those we have 
received are now determined to live for Christ. 

On the 26th I preached the Word to nearly a thousand 
men, on the gun-deck, from Hebrews ii. 3 : " How 
shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation ?" The 
interest still increasing. The next day twenty-two more 
of the seamen were received into membership with the 
church. I administered the Lord's Supper to them, in 
one of the after cabins. At the close of the meeting, 
three of the gun-room officers came and offered their 
mess-room to us, for any subsequent meetings. 

The whole number received into the church in a few 
weeks, as the fruit of this revival, was sixty-five. Of this 



320 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

number, sixty-one had pious parents who trained them 
for God in childhood. In their conversion, therefore, 
the faithfulness of the divine promise was fully illus- 
trated. In addition to those received in the Mariners' 
church, many more joined the Baptist and Methodist 
churches. It is believed, from a hundred and twenty, tc | 
a hundred and fifty in all. 

The closing Sabbaths of the year have in my experi- 
ence always been favorable seasons ; times in which God 
seemed to be savingly near to our people. Times of 
refreshing from the presence of the Lord, blessed to both 
seamen and landsmen because of the gracious manifes- 
tation of Divine power in connection with the preached 
word. Perhaps on those occasions, more prayer went up 
to God for the success of the gospel. Or it may be that 
the solemnities associated with the passage of years, 
caused the word to be more sincerely listened to and 
more faithfully applied. Or, again, the sense of minis- 
terial responsibility may have induced more pungent 
preaching, more faithful, fervid, and intense effort for the 
salvation of souls. Whatever the cause, certain it is that 
very many precious souls were born again on those occa- 
sions. 

The last Sabbath of the year 1858 did not differ in this 
«jct from any of its predecessors. As illustrating this 
point I introduce here two narratives. The first, that of 
a sea captain who rose in our prayer-meeting on January 
1st, 1859, and publicly dedicated himself to God, saying 
that he had been moved to take tin's important step as a 
result of convictions produced in his mind by the sermon 
which I had preached on the morning of the last Sabbath 
of the year, from I John ii. 18: " Little children, it is 



a captain's experience. 321 

the last time." He gave the following account of him- 
self, which, at my request, he wrote out afterwards. 
I insert it here in his own words : 

" I have followed the sea thirty-two years — for the last twenty- 
two as chief-officer and captain out of the port of Liverpool. I 
am now forty-six years of age, and am pained to say that I have 
been all this time without the love of God in my heart. Twice 
have I been dismasted, once run down, have weathered two terri- 
ble hurricanes, one off the Falkland Islands, and another on my 
passage heme from the West Indies. I have ridden out many 
severe gales of wind, and during all these years my heart was im- 
penitent. Yes ! harder than the nether mill-stone. Drink was 
my besetting sin. Many a time have I asked the Lord to have 
mercy, but I had no mercy on myself. It pleased the Lord to 
direct my steps to America, and to the port of New York. Sail- 
or-like, and as usual, on coming ashore, I took a glass of grog, 
and then another, and so on, until my tippling brought on 
drunkenness. In this condition the Lord led me, I believe, 
to the Sailors' Home. They were at prayers. The spirit of 
God met me there. The words read, ' They have Moses and 
the prophets/ touched my heart. May the Lord have mercy 
on me now, I thought. It came like a thunderbolt to my 
heart. For the Bible, that contained Moses and the proph- 
ets, had been lying in my chest since 1826, just thirty-three 
years. And I do not think I have looked into it a half 
dozen times. The thought made me miserable. I tried to 
pray, but my tongue was tied. I wept. I sought peace. I 
sought it carefully, with tears. I was almost giving up. I was 
ashamed of and despised myself. But the Lord was working 
his mighty work in my spirit. 

" The following day I signed the Temperance pledge. I was 
still troubled, however, still weary in body and sick in soul. I 
could find no rest On the next Sabbath I went to the Mari- 
ners' church and heard you, sir, preach. Your text was, ' It is 

14* 



322 FIFTY TEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

the last time. 1 I said to myself, ' My God ! what shall I do ? I 
cannot pray. I've tried, but, alas, I have not the power to move 
my tongue ! My feelings were such that I thought I should die 
in the church. At night I prayed to God, and, blessed be his 
holy name, through Christ Jesus, my eyes were opened, my heart 
softened, my tongue loosed. I saw by faith, my Redeemer nail- 
ed to the cross. I saw his side bleeding for me. I began to 
praise God, and prayed as I had never prayed before. A won- 
derful change came over me. The things I once loved, I now 
hate. I praise God that he has spared me for Christ's sake. 
N< >w, by his grace and redeeming love, and by the aid of the 
Holy Spirit, I acknowledge Jesus Christ and Him Crucified as my 
only Saviour." 

The second is that of a lad, a member of our Sabbath- 
school, who was awakened by the same discourse. He 
tells his story thus, in a note to me, a few days after: 

" Mr. Jones, — Dear Sir — I have felt very sad concerning my 
soul for the last three weeks, but I think, if God should call me 
away to-night, it would be to inherit eternal life. I was awaken- 
ed in the experience meeting, and convicted of sin. My wicked 
heart was troubled, and when an invitation was extended to those 
who were tired of sin, to rise, that they might be prayed for, Sa- 
tan told me not to rise, as my companions would laugh at me ; 
but I was able to overcome the temptation. Then he told me it 
■ ¥0 late, that I was too great a sinner. i You have sinned be- 
God and blasphemed his name,' he said. It was all true, 
but I have truly repented of it. When I look back over my past 
life, and call to mind the wickednesses I have committed, I trem- 
ble. I have wickedly cursed my blessed Redeemer, who died 
for inc. But I believe he has had mercy on me. I hope he 
will forgive me for all the trouble I have caused my dear mother 
and father. I thank God that he has opened my eyes to the 
light, that he has showed me the danger I was in. Oh, how 
blind I was ! J pray that he will strengthen me agakist all sin, 



A captain's experience. 323 

help me to pray for my wicked companions, and to walk in the 
straight path myself. It was once a great trouble for me to go to 
church ; now it is my greatest pleasure. I love now to hear the- 
blessed name of Jesus mentioned. The strongest convictions I 
had, were under your sermon, on the text, 'It is the last time/ 
It came upon me like a shock. It rang in my ears, 'the last 
time/ I really did think it was the last night on earth to me. 
I poured out my heart to God, right in the church, and begged 
him to spare me. I thought, Oh, if I should die to-night, what 
would become of my soul ! Oh, may that precious Saviour con- 
tinue to have mercy upon me ! I have found greater happiness 
in Christ, this week, than I ever had before in all my life. Do 
not forget to pray for me. Oh, that Bible is a precious book to 
me ! J. E." 

The writer of the above became an active worker in 
the church, and did much good by his earnest and per- 
suasive efforts among the young. He labored also to fill 
God's house with the sons of the sea. His union with 
the church was blessed to us all. At the opening of the 
Rebellion, he, with some half a dozen other young men 
of my church, were among the first to volunteer for the 
army, and became attached to the " Duryea Zouaves." 
They went through the perils of the march, the bivouac 
and the fight, maintaining their Christian integrity, and 
came home, though young in years, as veterans of the 
war. My young friend still lives (1884), has a family of 
children, is walking in the fear of the Lord, and is among 
the prominent master mechanics of the metropolis, carry- 
ing on a large manufacturing interest, of which he is the 
sole head, and practical guide, and into which he carries 
the principles which were quickened into life by the Holy 
Spirit, under the preached word on that December even- 
ing, twenty-five years ago. 



CHAPTER XV. 

INCREASED INTEREST — THE DISPERSION. 

Large accessions — Pastoral instruction — First swarm —Fresh leaders to the 
front — New praying centre — Letter from the St. Louis — Farewells — 
Mutual pledges — The source of streams — Orlop deck illumined — Lord's 
Supper — Further depletion— U. S. steamer Brooklyn — Largest meet- 
ing of all— My diary — Motherly solicitude — Source of inspiration — 
Cheering letters — Spirit willing, flesh weak — Colors nailed to the mast 
— Princeton Seminary — Not rested, but refreshed— Brightening up— Sad, 
but joyful — A sea-stock — Good resolution — Parting address — The de- 
cisive day — Service on the Sound — Cheerful response — The North 
Carolina, our school— Burden of souls— The 27th of April, 1859 — Tears 
the rule — New springs opened — " Laus Deo." 

Ox the first of January, 1859, one hundred and eighty- 
six of the seamen of the receiving ship North Carolina, 
walked aft of their own accord and stopped their grog 
ration, determining to begin the year as sober men. 
" Behold how great a matter a little fire kindleth." At 
our communion season, on January 2d, 1859, the names 
of fifty-two seamen were reported as added to our church 
roll, including the forty-four converts of the above ship; 
all of them, on a confession of their faith in Christ On 
the 6th, I visited the ship again, accompanied by two 
members of the council, for the purpose of instructing our 
new-born brethren in the duties, privileges and responsi- 
bilities of the Christian life. I read and expounded the 
3 2 4 



PASTORAL INSTRUCTION. 325 

xiiith chapter of 1st Corinthians, and urged, with special 
emphasis, the exercise of Charity or Love, and depreca- 
ted everything like clannishness and sectarian one-sided- 
ness, showing that One is our Master, and that all we are 
brethren. I dwelt on the necessity of watching our own 
hearts, and avoiding all pride and self-esteem. I closed 
with a fervent appeal to them to " put on the whole 
armor of God ; the armor of righteousness on the right 
hand and on the left ;" to assiduously cultivate watchful- 
ness and prayer, and to be at peace among themselves. 

This visit did good, as I have reason to know. Men 
were profuse in their expressions of gratitude for the 
instruction received, and in their promises of faithfulness 
to their new Master. In evidence of their true concep- 
tion of their great obligations and responsibilities, they 
had already, without any prompting from without, organ- 
ized themselves as a body of believers, and appointed 
leaders of meetings, correspondents and committees for the 
better carrying forward of the work of the Lord among 
their shipmates ; thus carrying the war into the enemies' 
camp, and laboring for the rescue of other souls, which 
they recognized as equally precious in the Master's sight 
with their own. 

The first of the new converts to swarm from the parent 
hive, was a band of about twenty, who were included in a 
draft of two hundred and fifty men, picked out for the 
crew of the U. S. steamer St. Louis, which had been 
put in commission for a cruise on the coast of Central 
America. Among these were John A. Morris, and the two 
brethren, Staigg and Hilkins, who, with him, had origin- 
ated the daily prayer-meeting, from which such blessed 
results had accrued. This gave us an earnest of the good 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

thin >me, even of the precious work of grace which 

it will be our privilege to chronicle hereafter. In this 
company of over twenty, seventeen of whom were new 
converts, we had the assurance that, with Morris for a 
leader, there would be no timidity displayed in the pros- 
ecution of the warfare against Satan's stronghold on 
the berth-deck. In addition to this source of confidence 
was the fact that one of the lieutenants was a devout man, 
a member of the Presbyterian church ; from whose 
official position and influence we saw an agency of safety 
to them from petty spite and persecutions ; or at least of 
such modifications of insane fury, as would comport with 
a sense of the respect which is due to the quarter-deck. 
Nor were we mistaken, as the sequel will show. The 
effect of the departure of the brethren of the St. Louis, 
on those who remained, is referred to in a letter written 
January 3d, the day on which they were transferred to 
their own ship. The writer says : 

"The crew of the St. Louis left us this afternoon. We feel 
tha. we have sustained a great loss by so many of our leading 
members being taken from us. Still we know that God has not 
left us, and so long as He is pleased to remain with us we shall 
do well." 

The Lord did remain with them. Other men were 
brought to the front, and the good work suffered no detri- 
ment. The meetings continued to be attended by large 
numbers, and others were converted. 

On Sabbath, the 9th, I preached on board the St. 

Louis, from Isaiah lv. 6, 7. The Holy Spirit was manifestly 

ent to own the word and to convey it to the heart. 

Many of the men were in tears. Rev. Mr. Stockbridge, 



LETTER FROM THE ST. LOUIS. 327 

who ever gave us his warmest sympathies, and the Rev. 
Mr. Hind, of the Madras mission, were present. Two 
days afterwards I supplied the men with an abundance 
of religious and devotional reading matter for a sea stock. 
The religious services of their new ship were inaugurated 
by a prayer-meeting, which was commenced on the 13 th, 
in the yeoman's store-room. The condition in which 
these brethren were, spiritually, and the favorable auspi- 
ces under which they went forth to their brilliant, but 
untried future, may best be shown by quoting a letter, 
written to me previous to their departure, by one of their 
number : 

" United States Ship St. Louis, 

' ' New York, Ja?i. 17th, 1859. 
"Dear Sir, and much esteemed Pastor — Now that we are about 
to launch out into the deep, to leave home, and friends, for far 
distant lands and scenes, permit us to say a few words to you 
before we part, it may be, in the providence of God, never to 
meet again. Many of us who address you now, have been by 
the grace of God, through your instrumentality, raised from the 
gall of bitterness and the bonds of iniquity, to a lively hope, that 
through the merits of the precious blood of Jesus Christ, our sins 
have been pardoned. And oh, dear sir ! how much have we to 
be thankful for, to God and to you ! May he reward you : for, 
though our hearts are bounding with gratitude to you, we are 
powerless, beyond mere words, to express it. Accept then, sir, 
our warmest, our heartfelt expressions of gratitude and esteem, 
with the sincerest hope and prayer to God that he will bless you 
in your labors, and grant you many souls for your hire. In con- 
clusion, pray for us ; pray for the infant colony which you have 
planted, that it may be watered by the blessing of God, and 
bring forth fruit abundantly for the harvest. And rest assured 
that our feeble prayers are ever ascending before the throne of 
grace for you, and fur the church ; and oh, may God in his 



3^S FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

infinite mercy giant that we may all be spared to meet again * 
1 [is table, to declare the wonders that he docth for the childa/i 
of men. So^ with every wish, dear sir, for your happiness and 
pn asperity, we now bid you an affectionate yet sorrowing fare- 
well." 

Signed by John A. Morris, and nine others. The formal, 
and to many of the crew the final farewell, was a very 
solemn and interesting event. The men gathered around 
me in groups, with expressions of gratitude and with tear- 
ful eyes. As we grasped hands, we mutually pledged 
to each other our sympathies and our prayers, agree- 
ing to correspond frequently. So well were these prom- 
ises kept that a volume of no ordinary interest, and of good 
proportions might be made from the inter-correspond- 
ence of this vessel alone. But, leaving the St. Louis 
and her Christian band, for the present, to continue her 
course toward the tropics, I will lay before the reader 
a chronological record of events up to the time that the 
several drafts were sent off to join their respective ships, 
and carry the good word of life forth to illumine the 
heathen world. Thence, I may return, and recount 
briefly the history of the work of grace in each of the 
ds, from the records on hand. Coming back then 
to the North Carolina, the source whence these vari- 
ous streams of Christian influence issued, we find the 
d work progressing favorably among the many left 
behind. On the 13th, I was on board, and conducted a 
prayer-meeting, at which eight new converts testified 
to the abounding grace of the living God, as manifested 
in their own experience. A week later, 1 led another 
precious meeting, at which still more conversions were 
reported, the progress being healthy and without any 



ORLOP DECK ILLUMINED. 329 

boisterousness or undue excitement. It seemed as if the 
orlop deck, usually so dark, had been suddenly illumined 
by the spirit of God. It was truly the birth-place of 
souls unto righteousness. The place of cursing and 
other works of darkness had become vocal with songs 
of praise and prayer. On the 24th, ten more men were 
examined with a view to union with the church. Pray- 
er-meetings in the evening, vigorous and vitalized by 
the spirit of God. 

Captain Ward issued an order, by which Rev. Ira 
Steward, of the Baptist church, and myself, were alter- 
nately to officiate in the conducting of the services. On 
the 29th visited the North Carolina, and the U. S. steamer 
Brooklyn. Obtained from the captain of the last named 
vessel, permission for some of the crew, who desired it, 
to worship ashore, on the Sabbath. Found in her purser 
a devout man of God, whose influence was of incalculable 
benefit to the believing men who sailed with him, in se- 
curing for them facilities for conducting their meetings. 
On the 30th administered the Lord's Supper once more on 
board the North Carolina. Nine more of her seamen were 
enrolled on our church books. Prayed the Lord that I 
might preach this day 

"As never sure to preach again, 
And as a dying man to dying men." 

On the 2d of February, the Christian workers of the 
" old North" were still further depleted by a draft, which 
was ordered to join the U. S. steamer Brooklyn, leaving a 
sufficient number behind, however, to carry on the work. 
Ten of these were members of our church. I followed the 
brethren on board their new ship, supplied them with 



330 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

ks, tracts, and other reading matter, and bade them 
welL They sailed on the 5th for the southern coast, 
whither we shall follow them by-and-by. 

On the 9th preached on board the receiving ship 
again. Took for my subject, John i. 29: " Behold the 
Lamb of God, that taketh away the sin of the world.' ' 
Also led the prayer-meeting in the evening. On the 
15th, one of the brethren wrote: 

"lam happy to inform you that our little band of believers is 
more closely bound together than ever. I feel that it will give 
you joy to know that we are living together in brotherly love and 
unity. Last Sabbath evening was the happiest I have ever spent. 
We conducted the service ourselves, and I sincerely believe that 
we realized the presence and power of the Holy Spirit. The 
brethren were all engaged. As soon as one had finished praying, 
another was on his knees. Some told their experience of temp- 
tations which had assailed them, but expressed the purpose to 
continue faithful to the end." 

On the 1 8th, again preached from istTim. i. 15 : "This 

faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that 

Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom 

I am chief." On the 27th administered the Lord's 

Supper, on her berth-deck, and had one of the largest of 

all the large meetings we have ever had on board of her. 

Received three more of her recruits into the church. 

The wife of Captain Ward — a godly woman — exhibited a 

marvellous interest in the blessed work. She looked on 

men with a kind of motherly solicitude, and rejoiced 

to hear that any of them turned from sin unto God. I am 

that she secured for us many privileges which 

otherwise might not have enjoyed. As an illustration 

of the effect which the services sometimes produced on 



SOURCE OF INSPIRATION. 33 1 

those who were looking on, I will venture to quote an 
entry made in my Journal of this date : 

■ ' This afternoon I preached to the crew of the receiving ship, 
from Matt xxv. 14-30, the parable of the Talents. Had a very 
large audience. Mrs. Ward said to me at the close of the sendee, 
1 1 do think, Mr. Jones, that you are inspired ' I will not say 
how judicious this expression of her feelings was. Yet I know 
that in a certain limited and restricted sense it was true. For I 
believe that I spoke as the Holy Spirit gave me utterance. I 
know, too, that I earnestly invoked his aid, and that though the 
press of duties prevented me from choosing my words beforehand, 
my sermon was by no means unstudied." 

I may add, the remark neither flattered nor elated 
me, but enabled me, I trust, humbly to look up to Him 
from whom all inspiration comes, and thank Him for any 
of those qualifications which make me acceptable in my 
ministrations to the men of the sea. I only hope that all 
I do may redound to the honor and glory of God, in the 
salvation of souls. In the evening I preached to my own 
people, from the words, " Go, stand and speak in the 
temple, to the people, all the words of this life/' Acts v. 
20. The people were intensely interested. Much emo- 
tion elicited toward the close. The large audience seemed 
to be moved as one man, and tears fell from many eyes 
unused to weep. May God add his blessing ! 

u March ijlh. — Four sermons to-day, with a marriage and a 
baptism between. On board the receiving ship in the afternoon, 
took my text from Phil. iv. 19 : 'Christ, the source of all supply/ 
Almost unfit for labor, from fatigue. Yet preached with much 
energy, and, I trust, with faithfulness, God giving both strength 
and words. 

i( ijth. — In bed all day from sheer exhaustion ; body and soul 



S3 2 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

taxed to the utni The spirit is willing, but the flesh is 

'• 22nd — Cheering letters coming in from every side, showing 
that labor is not in vain in the Lord. Oh, my Saviour, keep 
me near thy side ! Help me to preach Christ crucified to all, 
simply, in the power and in the love of the truth, for thine own 

.'' 

In a letter received this evening from one of the most 
useful of our members, on board the North Carolina, the 
writer says: 

" 1 pray fervently that I may be prepared for the solemn hour 
of death, and enabled to exclaim, ' O death, where is thy sting I* 
While I live I desire to be a burning and a shining light. Oh, 
Mr. Jones, how shall I express my thanks to you for turning me 
from the horrible and dangerous course I was pursuing, into the 
way of life ! I thank God, that in his divine mercy, he sent you 
on board this ship, to point mc to the Lamb of God. I thank 
God that 1 can say at last, I am a Christian. By the help of 
God 1 will fight the good fight of faith manfully. My colors are 
nailed to the mast. Believers here are united in the work, and 
are drawn closer to each other. Having tasted the sweets of 
religion, I now want to sec all my shipmates share them with me, 
and I pray God that he will increase our numbers here. Since 
you came on board last, we have had two or three more come 
on the Lord's side. The Spirit is still striving with our 
shipmates. I think, before long, we shall have others added to 
our numbers." 

" April is/. — Addressed the theological students at Princeton, 
on the promises of God concerning the conversion of seamen, 
and preached in the chapel of the First Presbyterian Church in 
to a < rowded audience, among whom were some of 
the first nun of Princeton, men of influence from abroad, and 
many stndenl term of study expires in a few weeks. 

On the whole, 1 believe God will bring good out of the visit. It 



CHEERING LETTERS. 333 

has been to me a very pleasant one. I have been permitted to 
converse with some of those who labored and prayed with me in 
the days of the revival during my own theological course. So 
that though I have not rested much, I feel refreshed. 

" 3rd. — One of the days of the Son of Man. Monthly con- 
cert. House crowded, — letters from the sea full of interest. 

" 4th. — Addressed the congregation of the Rev. James W. 
Alexander at their monthly concert of prayer. House full ; 
read letters from seamen. 

" yth. — Preparing hymns for a new edition of Sailors' Hymn- 
Book. 

"8th. — Another communication from the North Carolina, 
stated that there were two more young men who were waiting for 
the Communion to be administered on board, that they might 
sign articles in the good ship Zion, and take Jesus Christ for 
their Captain. The writer adds, ' I thank God things are bright- 
ening up. Our meeting last night was like old times. One 
more soul came out on the Lord's side. We are all getting 
stronger. I do believe we shall soon have another great revival 
here. Oh, what rejoicing there will be in the presence of the 
angels of God at this work among seamen ! If there is joy over 
one sinner that repents, who can describe the effect of the conver- 
sion of so many ? While I write, my whole soul is filled with 
gladness, and with love for my Master.' 

" 13th. — Made an address at the Cooper Institute on the occa- 
sion of the Forty-first Anniversary of the New York Port Society. 
Spoke forty-five minutes. Drs. William Adams and Plumer of 
South Carolina, addressed the people. 

" 17th. — Administered the Lord's Supper on the berth-deck 
of the North Carolina. In the evening preached at home 
from the parable of the Pharisee and the Publican, l God be mer- 
ciful to me, a sinner.' Luke xviii. 13. House full. Believe 
much good was done, — many touched. 

" igth. — The Rev. Mr. Swaney, who sails to-morrow for 
Callao, to preach to seamen there, called on me to-day to ex- 



334 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

amino my records, ami learn how I kept them. Gave him 
j facility, 

. .?.////. — On board the receiving ship, preached a 
a, '11 sermon to the men, who are drafted for the African 
Squadron and the China seas. They leave all these privileges 
in a few days. Many of them are new converts. My text was 
from Heh. x. 35-39 : 'Cast not away therefore your confi- 
dence, which hath great recompense of reward. ' For ye have 
need oi' patience, that after ye have done the will of God ye 
might receive the promises. For yet a little while, and he that 
shall come, will come, and will not tarry. Now the just shall 
live by faith : but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no 
pleasure in him. But we are not of them who draw back unto 
perdition : but of them that believe to the saving of the soul." 

It was a sad, and yet a joyful farewell. Sad, because it 
was morally certain that most of us would never meet 
again on this side the judgment seat. Yet joyful, when 
the changed condition of so many was considered. They 
were going forth to trials, and cares, and anxieties that 
were new to them, it is true ; but they were going forth 
panoplied for the conflict, and armed with the assurance 
that they had Omniscience for their guide, and Omnipo- 
tence for their strength. 

Many of the poor fellows wept while I was addressing 
them, in view of their near departure. It was announced 
that they were to leave on the 27th. I had selected this 
for the purpose of impressing their minds with 
necessity of entire and unwavering confidence in God. 
They all appeared fully to appreciate my solicitude for 
their spiritual welfare, and my desire to do them good. 
Many gave expression to their warm attachment to their 
pastor and to their fellow church members, with whom 
they had so recently been brought into such pleasing rcla- 



FAREWELL SERVICES. 335 

tions. On the 25 th I visited them again, provided them 
with a supply of suitable literature, and presented to 
each of the thirty-two members of our church, a selected 
package of stationery, containing pens, ink, paper, and 
envelopes ; thus insuring the necessary supply of material 
for future correspondence. They were evidently, both 
surprised and gratified ; for there are times when such 
supplies cannot be procured for either love or money. 
Two days before the draft left the ship I received from one 
of the leading members of the brotherhood a letter, in 
which he says : 

' ' We are soon to leave this ship, and it is my earnest prayer 
that the Holy Spirit may go with us, and in his infinite mercy 
make us the humble instruments in his hands of bringing many 
of our shipmates into the fold of God. For myself, I may say, 
that with the help of God, I am resolved to buckle on the whole 
armor of God, and to fight the good fight of faith, looking for- 
ward and not backward, and pressing toward the mark for the 
prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. If we are mer- 
cifully spared to return from this cruise, I hope we may bring our 
sheaves with us. If we should not meet again on earth, then 
may we all meet in heaven, to part no more, where we shall 
attune our harps, and sing praises to the Lamb that was slain to 
take away the sin of the world. Commend us to all the brethren 
and sisters in the church, and say ' Good-bye ' for us. Pray for 
the Xoith Carolina to-morrow night." 

Wednesday the 27th was one of the decisive days in 
the history of these men. The draft of several hundred 
recruits which had been told off for Boston, where the 
several vessels to which they were to be assigned were 
fitting out, was to leave on the morrow by steamer, ac- 
companied by Lieut. Williamson, in command, and a 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

corps of officers as his aids. A farewell service was there- 
held in the orlop this evening. It was indeed a 
ritual feast to us all. It is described below by one 
who participated in it. I made a brief parting address. 
Much emotion was manifested. It was a place and time 
of weeping. Dry eyes were the exception, tears the rule. 
Is it to be wondered at, that even strong men wept under 
such circumstances? They had been inducted into an 
entirely new life. The course, as it lay before them, was 
all untried. They had been largely helped by advice 
and counsel of Christian brethren. They had been for the 
first few weeks under pastoral supervision and instruction 
in spiritual things. Now they were about to leave all these 
advantages and be thrown in a great measure on their 
own resources. They were not only leaving the birth- 
place of their souls unto righteousness, their pastor, and 
all their new found friends and brethren in Christ, but in 
a few days were to be separated from each other. Some 
to the U. S. ships Constellation, Portsmouth, Saratoga 
and San Jacinto, composing the African squadron, to be 
scattered up and down the sickly slave coast, and others 
to the U. S. frigate Hartford, to cruise in the muddy 
waters of the Ho-ang-ho, and do battle with the typhoons 
of the China Sea. I would have gladly accompanied 
them on their passage to Boston, could I have done so. 
I am glad that I did not. Had I been with them, the 
extemporized religious service held by them on the way, 
might have been considered as a result of my prompting. 
As it was, the idea originated among themselves. But 
as I could not go with them, I sent a letter of counsel 
and comfort after them. 

On their arrival in Boston, on Friday evening, they 



CHEERFUL RESPONSE. 337 

were transferred to the receiving ship Ohio. My letter 
reached them on Saturday morning, "and was at once ac- 
knowledged in the following communication from Jos. B. 
Lyons, one of the converts — a member of my church, of 
whom I shall speak at length in another place. 

"U. S Receiving Ship Ohio, 

"Boston, April 30th, 18 5g. 
1 y My Dear Pastor — Your welcome letter came to hand this 
morning. Many thanks for its contents ! We arrived here 
about 5 o'clock last evening, and as a matter of course there are a 
thousand conjectures about what is to be done with us. We had 
a remarkably pleasant passage. Nothing occurred to mar the 
harmony and good will of the company, for the reason that there 
was no rum on board. We had, however, instead, through the 
kindness of the captain of the boat, influenced by our first Lieu- 
tenant, J. C. Williamson, who was in command of the draft, a 
splendid meeting on the way. The cabin of the steamer was 
converted into the house of God, and God grant that the im- 
pression made on those present, may be deep and lasting. 
There were men among us w T ho came round in the draft of two 
hundred and thirty from Boston to New York, last November, 
who were at that time, among the vilest of the vile, but who are 
now soldiers of Christ, enlisted under the banner of the cross. 
The evening of the 27th will never be forgotten by any of us, you 
may rest assured. I do not desire ever to pass through so trying 
a scene again. I never in my life felt so much grief at parting, 
as on that occasion, and I am sure that I write the true senti- 
ments of those present in saying the same. We often referred to 
it on our passage. You may be assured, our dear pastor and 
friend, that it will always remain fresh in our memories. As you 
have truly remarked in your letter, we are going out as mis- 
sionaries in the cause of our Great Redeemer. I know the inter- 
est you, and all the brethren and friends feel in us. We have left 
the home of our nruo birth. The North Carolina has been a 

15 



FIFTY TEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

school, and we are now sent out to fight the great fight of faith. 
grant that, if we are destined to fall, it may be with our face 

to the foe ! We know that we have your prayers, and those of a 
thousand others. If we do but put our trust in Him, who never 
ikes his own, all will be well. That we may all continue stead- 
has been, and shall be, my constant prayer. All join in 
sending their best love to Airs. Jones and the children, and to the 
brethren and sisters of the church. 

"J. B. L." 

That these beloved brethren were fully alive to the 
responsibilities of their position ; that the burden of souls 
rested upon them, and that they appreciated the impor- 
tance of the new relations into which they had entered 
toward God, and toward their fellow-men, will appear 
from their communications to me on the subject, and be 
illustrated by the zeal and earnestness with which they 
sought out opportunities for doing good, and the readi- 
ness with which they availed themselves of the facilities 
rded them for the advancement of the kingdom and 
glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. 

The 27th of April, 1859, will ever be a memorable day 
in the history of the work of grace among the men of the 
sea, because it was then, by the distribution of these con- 
verted men-of-war's men, that moral forces were set in 
motion, which have continued, with more or less of their 
native vigor, ever since, centres of Christian influence, 
from which the Divine light radiated in every direction, 
I will continue to radiate till time shall cease to be, 

re then called into being. New springs of Divine 
<;e were opened up in human hearts, and new streams 
flowed forth to irrigate the garden of the Lord. Spirit- 
ual agencies were multiplied, and called into activity, the 



NEW SPRINGS OPENED. 339 

pulsations of which, under the sanctifying energy and 
direction of the Holy Spirit, were communicated from 
heart to heart — from ship to ship — from sea to 
sea — and from shore to shore, until civilization every- 
where marvelled at the spectacle of sailors, hitherto 
looked upon, by too many, as the offscouring of the earth, 
men who had polluted the soil of every land with their 
blasphemies, their drunken orgies, and their practical 
abjuration of the principles and precepts of the moral law 
— now preaching Christ the crucified one, and practicing 
his love in the daily duties of their calling ; — making 
cabin and forecastle, wardroom and berth- deck vocal 
with prayer and songs of devotion. Heathenism, too, 
wondered and pondered, when they saw, coming up from 
the sea, to their shores — men, who had so long and so 
fatally caricatured Christianity, of which they were too 
often the only living representatives, now walking the 
streets sober and peaceable, clothed, and in their right 
minds, and in some instances converting the temples of 
idolatry into places of worship to the divine Christ, mak- 
ing the very rafters ring, as did the Christian sailors of 
the U. S. steamer Niagara in Japan, with hymns of praise 
to the living God. 



CHAPTER XVI. 

OUTSIDE TESTIMONY. 

Chaplain Charles S. Stewart, U. S. N. — Awakening without a parallel — 
But one testimony — First experience — Simplicity in prayer — Bands of 
praying men — Meeting of the 27th of April described — Mrs. Ward and 
s~>n — Utterance choked by emotion — Wonderful scene — Ground of confi- 
dence — Noticeable sign of the times -Pastor's report — Chaplain Stock- 
bridge's testimony — Navy feeling the awakening — A naval officer-Old 
Slip meeting — Singular unanimity — Genuineness of the work — Wide dis- 
persion of the converts — Individual experiences — " I grasped the life 
buoy " — Out of the pit — Severe lesson — Gave myself away to God — Steer 
by the Bible — God had mercy on me — My struggle. 

The 27th of April, 1859, was a memorable day in the 
calendar of the converts of the North Carolina, a day 
which seems to have been looked upon as that in which 
the most blessed of all the blessed seasons in that remark- 
able revival reached its climax. In that particular it 
served as a standard of measure by which to gauge all 
subsequent manifestations of the divine spirit. Those 
dear brethren looked back to it, as the early Christians 
did to the season of Pentecost. It is on this account 
that we find the disciples on board the Hartford, Niagara, 
and other vessels of war, when they experienced some 
special season of delight, some joyous occasion, when 
their hearts were melted with love, comparing it to the 
27th of April, when they took their farewell of the birth- 
place of their souls unto righteousness. I cannot do bet- 
34o 






CHAPLAIN CHARLES S. STEWART. 341 

ter, therefore, at this point, than to present the description 
of that scene, as witnessed by the Rev. Charles S. Stewart, 
Chaplain U. S. Navy, who had the opportunity of trac- 
ing the progress of the blessed work which I have but 
faintly described in the preceding pages. At the time of 
the inception of this gracious revival, and for some months 
afterwards, he was on waiting orders, and had ample op- 
portunity to judge of the genuineness of the work, the 
heartiness with which it was conducted, and the precious- 
ness of the accrued results. The date of the letter was 
April 30th, 1859, three days after the memorable farewell 
at which he was present. His view of the matter is thus 
stated : 

1 1 Dear Sir — The interest in the subject of religion which is 
known to have existed for many months past among the recruits 
on board the receiving ship North Carolina, at the Navy Yard 
in New York, justly claims, it is thought, a place in the records 
of the Port Society. Its origin as a human agency is traceable to 
the fidelity and zeal of a member of the Mariners' church, 
founded and sustained by that body ; and its results, thus far, 
have, through the grace of God, already added sixty-five con- 
verted seamen to her communion. It is this view of the subject 
that leads me, sir, to address you the following statement in 
regard to it. Though not at present on duty myself, under orders 
of Government, it has been my privilege to be associated volun- 
tarily with my brother in the naval service, the Rev. Mr. Stock- 
bridge, the chaplain of the North Carolina, more or less fre- 
quently for months past in the daily evening meetings held on 
board, and in preaching informally to the throng of eager listen- 
ers attending them. I thus write from personal observation. As 
a work of grace, this awakening is without parallel, to the best of 
my knowledge, in the moral history of the navy or the religious 
annals of the sea. The detail of the many incidents of affecting 



34? FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

interest connected with it might readily be expanded into a vol- 
ume. From the beginning, it has been marked by one or two 
features characteristic of the revivals of the present day ; one, the 
human agency by which it was developed, that of private Chris- 
3 united in prayer, and in personal effort for the salvation of 
and them. Another, the unity of spirit with which the 
work has been carried on, irrespective of the denominational dif- 
ferences, and varied church memberships of the agents." 

After briefly relating the history of the work, as has 
been already done in another place, he proceeds to say : 

" The opening of such a meeting by a little band of sailors on 
board of a man-of-war, was indeed a novel spectacle. Knowing 
the spot allotted to them and its surroundings as well as I do, in 
picturing to myself the group thus gathered for prayer, in an ob- 
scure nook of the lowest deck of a ship of the line, far below the 
water mark, amid darkness, which the light of a single battle 
lantern only made more visible, I have been led involuntarily 
to assimilate the scene to the worship of a like number of primi- 

I Christians in the seclusion and dim obscurity of a catacomb. 
It can readily be imagined, that it was with wonder, that the first 

la of prayer, and the first song of praise from such a place, 

to the ears, and fell upon the hearts of the careless and un- 
godly men on deck above. 

" One and another of these were quickly attracted to the spot, 
some in surprise, some in curiosity, and some in sport, till in a 
few evenings the number was increased from four to eight and 
twelve, and twenty to fifty, and a crowd the place could not hold. 
It was soon evident that 'praying breath ' there had not been 
spent in vain, and that the spirit of the Most High was in their 
midst, awakening the consciences, and touching the hearts of the 

ly men around. Night after night, one and another, even of 

me to the meeting to laugh and deride, left, only to 

weep and to pray, and it was not long before the chaplain of the 

ship and the respective pastors of the original little flock were 



SIMPLICITY IN PRAYER. 343 

called from the shore to aid in guiding numbers of repentant sin- 
ners in the way of salvation. Cases of hopeful conversion began 
soon to occur. Within the first six weeks the number of these 
amounted to more than fifty, and they have continued still to 
occur till the whole number now exceeds hundreds. A majority 
of these are young men from eighteen to thirty years of age, the 
hardiest of the ship's company. Some who were ringleaders in 
sin are now examples of piety and usefulness. 

" The interest of these meetings in the earnestness, solemnity 
and deep feeling characterizing them, can be hardly overstated. 
Any description of them would fail in conveying the impressions 
received by an eye-witness. This is especially true of those in 
the earlier period of the revival, when the manifestations of the 
grace of God in the power of His word and spirit upon the hearts 
of these hardy men, had all the freshness of novelty. But at all 
times there has been, I believe, but one testimony given by every 
Christian who has had the privilege of attending them. As to the 
spiritual benefit to his own soul, derived from the prayers and ex- 
hortations and songs of praise of these new-born disciples, I can- 
not myself soon forget my first evening among them. The meet- 
ing was already begun when I arrived, and it was slowly and with 
difficulty that I made my way through the crowd, swaying from 
side to side in the endeavor to make room for me along the fore- 
passage of the orlop, to a seat at the far end. On gaining this, 
and turning round, the whole place was seen to be filled with 
stalwart men, clustered in every available spot, like bees in a 
swarm, while hundreds of eager eyes, and earnest faces, spoLe a 
welcome to one coming to them in the name of the Lord Jesus ; 
and when it was said soon afterwards by one of their number, 
'Let us pray/ as my eyes fell on those immediately around me, I 
saw such crouching attitudes of self-abasement before God, 
wherever space allowed, that made me feel that I had never my- 
self yet taken a posture of true humiliation in prayer. 

"As to the prayers themselves, no gracious heart could resist 
the sympathetic and spiritual influence of such petitions of child- 



344 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

like simplicity, penitential importunity, and new-born love, or 
tain unmoved by the hearty songs of praise, or untouched by 
the point, and not (infrequently the power of the appeals of the 
converted to their impenitent shipmates. I have known noth- 
in my experience as a Christian, and as a minister of the 
pel, more affecting than the sight of such men, many of 
them giants in frame, as well as in past sin, in the exercises of 
penitent faith and love. It is worthy of remark, and should be 
the subject of thanksgiving, that this work of grace has occurred 
on board a receiving ship, from which men are constantly being 
drafted to other ships. Thus, these converted sailors will event- 
ually be widely scattered throughout the naval service, and if 
converts indeed, will carry with them the leaven of grace in a 
goodly example, and in a spirit of prayer wherever they go. 

11 Within the three months past, three Government vessels 
have sailed from New York on foreign duty, carrying with them 
each a band of praying men from the North Carolina, and it is 
now but two days since the whole body of church members on 
board of her — except five, were transferred to Boston to be dis- 
tributed among the naval vessels now fitting our there for differ- 
ent squadrons in the service. The religious interest among 
these continued in all its freshness. The daily evening meetings 
were ever attended with quickening power and refreshing grace. 
Each successive one seemed better than that preceding it, and 
that which was indeed the last to many proved best of all. It oc- 
curred on the 27th inst., the night before the draft for Boston 
embarked, and will not soon be forgotten by any one who was 
nt The Rev. Mr. Stockbridge, the chaplain, was un- 
lably absent, but the Rev. Mr. Jones of the Mariners' 
church, Mr. Harris and Mr. Baldwin of the Port Society, young 
Mr. Eastman, of the American Tract Society, Mrs. Ward, the 
wife of Captain Ward, the commander of the North Carolina, who 
ipartmentS on board, and who lias taken the liveliest interest 
in ti, : 1 welfare of the crew ; young Mr. Ward, her son, 

myself were there. This party clustered around the water- 



UTTERANCE CHOKED BY EMOTION. 345 

butt as a reading-table, forming the central group in the place 
where prayer has now so long been wont to be made, in the very 
depths of the ship, on the orlop-deck. 

"While the church members and more serious of the ship's 
company, to the number of a hundred, perhaps, were seated 
closely by us on every side, the ladders leading to the deck 
above, and overlooking the scene, were crowded by * outsiders, ' 
as the careless and unimpressed are technically called, while 
groups of these, also, standing thickly on either side of the 
hatchway, filled up the space that was left 

"Warm brotherly love, and deep tenderness of heart seemed 
to be the predominating feelings among the professed followers 
of the Lord, and the meeting was scarcely commenced before 
the remembrance and associations of the past winter, in all that 
had been witnessed and experienced by us there, with the cer- 
tainty that this would be the last time we should ever be assem- 
bled thus together, became too much for the sympathies and 
even for the manliness of nerve of many. The lips of the har- 
diest faltered, and their cheeks were bedewed with tears, as one 
after another they arose to bear a last testimony in the place of 
their spiritual birth, to the mercy of God and the love of the 
Lord Jesus, to give a parting exhortation to their unconverted 
shipmates, or to plead once more in prayer for all needed grace 
for themselves, and for all present. The exercises were prolong- 
ed far beyond the accustomed hour, and when — in being closed 
at last, by a brief and touching address from Mr. Jones, the be- 
loved pastor of a majority of the church members, whose own 
utterance was choked by emotion, the frame of many a young 
Hercules around was seen to shake like an aspen leaf, while 
sobs, ineffectually suppressed, burst from many a manly bosom, 
and tears flowed freely on every side from eyes unused to weep. 
I never before witnessed such a scene of conflicting feelings in a 
company of sturdy men. 

" The pervading sentiments were, gratitude to God for his 
grace and mercy, love to the Lord Jesus, as the sinner's friend, 
15 r 



546 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

salvation, and the blessedness of eternal life, 
and unfeigned sorrow of soul for the words that were spoken, 
that we should see each Others' (lice no more in this place, which 
had so often been to tis none other than the house of God, and 
the very gate of^ heaven. The next day the whole draft was on its 
way to Boston." 

As Rev. Charles S. Stewart had been for many years a 
chaplain in the Navy, and had therefore large acquaintance 
with these men of the sea, which, together with his mis- 
sionary experience in the Sandwich Islands, enabled him 
to speak with confidence of the character of this work, 
and of the features of the new spiritual life, as shown by 
contact with the men in their every- day life, I will add 
his estimate of the genuineness and permanence of the 
effects of this awakening, as they appeared to his enlight- 
ened judgment. He says: 

There is great reason, I think, for confidence in the sincerity, 
an 1 stability ofpurp03e of a majority of these professed converts. 
y of them have already remained for months, not only un- 
shaken and steadfast in the midst of much persecution and temp- 
n, but have become manifestly greatly confirmed in faith and 
They have not only lived consistently and blamelessly in 
-fall, but have become practiced in the exercise of 
r and exhortation among their fellows, and are otherwise 
I » be leaders in meetings of devotion, and faithful laborers 
in the cause of good morals and personal piety. They are deeply 
sensible of the duty of boldly avowing the profession they have 
. and of being everywhere active workers in the cause of 
Christ. We a iraged to hope much from their influence 

in t:i is, from the fact that good tidings are reaching us, 

of tli of the subjects of this revival, who 

road, in persuading those with whom they 
iated, to follow their example in a life of faith and good 



PASTOR'S REPORT. 347 

works. These too, banded together in grace and love, are now 
gone forth with the full purpose of doing the works of righteous- 
ness to others. Intelligence already comes to us that the night 
they were on their way to Boston, they solicited the first Lieuten- 
ant Williamson, who had the draft in charge, to use his influence 
with the captain of the steamboat, by which they were conveyed, 
for the privilege of holding their accustomed evening prayer-meet- 
ing. This was not only cheerfully granted, but the captain and 
officers of the boat, as well as those of the Navy on board, were 
present in the saloon assigned for the purpose, while for an hour 
or more the waters of the Sound were made vocal with the songs 
of praise, and were hallowed by the prayers of this company of 
men-of-war's men. 

" It is a sign of the times worthy of notice, that the command- 
ers and officers of such ships in the Navy, as have companies of 
these professed Christians on board, have extended to them, so 
far as is known, the privilege of holding a daily prayer-meeting. 
Let all who love our common Lord and Saviour, pray that the 
Holy Spirit may go with, and ever abide with them. 
1 ' Yours, dear sir, very truly, 

"G S. Stewart, U. S. Navy." 

It was in this month of April, 1859, that I was per- 
mitted to report as a matter of thanksgiving to God, and 
congratulation among ourselves, that our church was 
represented by its converts, or by its active members, 
on board the U. S. ships Wabash, Sabine, Roanoke, St. 
Louis, Savannah, Brooklyn, Decatur, Ohio, Levant, 
Pennsylvania, North Carolina, store-ship Relief, and rev- 
enue cutter Corwin ; with the prospect of adding in a few 
days the Constellation, Portsmouth, Saratoga, San 
Jacinto, and Hartford to the number, all of whom, we 
have good evidence, are men of earnest, prayerful Christ- 
ian efforts ; men who feel it not only a duty, but a priv- 



348 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

i labor for Christ, and to follow him, "through evil 
rt and through good report." 

On board the Savannah, the St. Louis, the City of 
Brooklyn, the North Carolina, the Ohio, and the Wabash, 
the daily prayer-meeting is maintained, and from all the 
above named, the voice of prayer daily ascends from the 
mess-room of the officers, and from the berth-deck, to the 
car of God, who never suffers himself to be importuned in 
vain. Who shall measure the influence of these men ? 
Who shall predict the result of this little leaven on the 
whole lump of ungodliness, in the midst of which it 
is cast ? We are hearing also of daily meetings for 
prayer and religious conference on board ships in the 
West Indies, on the coast of Brazil, and in the Medi- 
terranean. 

On the departure of the Sabine, which vessel I had 
faithfully visited, provided her with religious reading 
matter in abundance, and had preached to, and privately 
conversed with her officers and crew, a blessed work 
of grace was carried forward on board. Rev. Joseph 
Stockbridge wrote to me, saying : 

"The navy is feeling the influence of the great awakening. 

>rs arc being converted, and are permitted to labor among 

tlifjir shipmates. We have supplied three ships with little bands 

of sailor missionaries, and they have gone to their different squad- 

I hope and pray that we may he so blessed on board 

hip, that every draft of men shall have in it praying sailors." 

With reference to this ship, the Sabine, I may state 
that in an interview had with her executive officer, the 
Sabbath before she sailed, I put this question to him : 
11 You have heard the objection raised with reference to 
religious men on board ships-of-war. Is there, in your 



NAVY FEELING THE AWAKENING. 349 

estimation, any good ground for them ? " He respond- 
ed, " I have been in the Navy twenty years, and before 
that was master in the merchant service. A pious sailor 
first drew my attention to things of a spiritual nature. I 
was in the habit of cursing when I came on deck, and saw 
anything going wrong, and one morning, as I was indulg- 
ing in my usual practice, my chief-mate, with a polite 
bow, said to me : ' Suppose the Lord had taken you at 
your word, sir. Where would you have been now ? ' 
I said, ' in hell/ From that hour I have endeavored to 
avoid using improper language. I am not a professing 
Christian, but I desire to be one, and I may say to you, 
that the best men in our Navy are the men who love God." 
The letters coming to me from sailors are of peculiar 
interest, and go far towards corroborating the statement 
of our brother Stockbridge, that the Navy is feeling the 
influence of the great awakening, and not the Navy only, 
but the entire mercantile marine. In fact, the triumphs 
of grace among the men of the sea everywhere, are but 
signs of the coming of the Son of Man, and constitute the 
evidence that God is fulfilling his prophesy and bidding 
the Church to take courage, and pray and labor for the 
conversion of the men of the sea. And is not the 
Church awaking to a sense of her duty to this widely 
extended class ? Is she not in earnest ? Has she not 
gone up into the Carmel of privilege, and prayed even 
seven times ? She has ! Prayers are even now ascend- 
ing in every direction, as the tidings of this marvellous 
awakening is carried by the press, not only to the com- 
mercial cities of the seaboard, but to every village and 
hamlet throughout the land ; and therefore has God 
caused this u little cloud M — not larger, relatively, " than 



350 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

a man's hand," to come " from the sea," and bring with 
it 4t a sound of abundance of rain." 

Fulton street and Old Slip daily prayer-meetings in 
the city, were constantly appealed to, to pray for the 
sailor, and they both cheerfully responded to every such 
request, with a heartiness that corresponded with the 
importance of the matter in hand. A naval officer who 
was often at the Old Slip meeting, on one occasion, while 
asking the prayers of the meeting for the sailors of the 
North Carolina, took occasion to say : 

" I have been connected with the United States' naval service 
about thirty years, and I have seen great changes taking place in 
the religious and spiritual condition of those connected with the 
service. It is not now as it once was ; and these changes be- 
token greater changes coming ; sending their shadows before, 
most cheering in their character, full of hope, and assuring that 
4 the abundance of the sea shall be converted to Christ/ I have 
D most happy to know that the sailor is often remembered 
here in prayer, and I rejoice with you in these changes for good. 
I know of no class of men who make more decided and warm- 
hearted Christians. I have seen the starting tear, and the swell- 
ing em' »tion when I have heard them tell what the Lord had 
f »r them in their salvation. 1 have heard them speak in 
the most simple, yet glowing language, of their religious experi- 
. and I am sure you would feel the same interest in these 
men as I do, if you knew them as well. 

" During last winter there was a precious work of grace on 
r 1 this ship. A large number of men were awakened 
and became Christians. These are now scattered through the 
service, in various vessels of war, and are at this time in differ- 
ent parts of the ocean. But we often hear from them. They 
arc maintaining their prayer-meetings on shipboard and are do- 
tlight before last, I was on board the North 
■Una, at religious services. There are now from six to seven 



SINGULAR UNANIMITY. 35 I 

hundred men on board. Toward the close of the services, all 
those who entertained hope that they were Christians were call- 
ed upon to manifest it by rising : and from twenty to twenty-five 
arose. Then those who felt interested on the subject of religion 
and desired the prayers of Christians, were requested to rise. 
From forty to fifty arose around the speaker, and a voice came 
out of the distant and dim part of the ship, saying, l There are 
more of us here standing, than you can count, sir/ 

' ' Now I come to ask you to pray for these men. In a few 
months they, too, will be far away, and distributed over the sea. 
What a blessing it would be if they should be converted, and 
should be messengers of our holy religion, exhibiting it, and pro- 
claiming it to all, wherever they go. It seems to me, that a peti- 
tion that the abundance of the sea may be converted, should en- 
ter into all our prayers." 

My object in presenting the above quotations has been, 
that the reader may have an opportunity of seeing the 
peculiar features of this revival through other eyes than 
my own. The testimony of such men as were drawn to 
these scenes by their interests in the progress of Christ's 
kingdom, cannot be other than interesting to those who 
are anxious to be correctly informed concerning them. 

It will be noticed, in the testimonies given, that there 
is a singular unanimity, as to the expression of the prom- 
inent features manifested in the meeting — the marked 
solemnity, the deep reverence for the truth, the sense 
of the Divine presence, the consciousness of personal 
umvorthiness, the prominence given to the word, the 
absence of all mere excitement, of boastful expressions, 
of self-seeking or self-assertion, the presence of an humble 
dependence on God, in Christ, and an earnest pleading 
for the guidance of the Holy Spirit, as well as an eager- 
ness to secure the salvation of their companions. It will 



352 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

noticed too that all agree on the emotional aspect of 
meetings. Some may be a little sceptical about 
>rs weeping, as they are said to do. Yet all who 

have been ear and eye-witnesses, have testified speci- 
ally to the tenderness exhibited under the preaching of 
the word, to the sense of sorrow for sin, and gratitude 
toward all who have in any measure contributed to the 
opening of their eyes or to the illuminating of their path- 
way Zionward. These are the fruits of the spirit, and 
testify to the genuineness of this work of grace, as affect- 
ing the hearts of these men, rather than their heads. 

Another feature which it is important to mark, is the 
vitality displayed in its permanence or continuance. 
Although the ranks of these believing brethren were 
thinned by repeated drafts, and the leading minds were 
removed, others were found to take both the laboring and 
the steering oar. Their places were filled by volunteers 
who had themselves become enamored of the work, and 
tlie men who had labored most arduously on board the 
" North,'' went forth bearing the precious seed to other 
ships, and to other souls. Out of the one grew the many, 
until from this spiritual home of the original converts, 
the spiritual children were scattered so extensively, that 
before the war closed over two hundred of our men-of- 
war were, to a greater or less extent, leavened with their 
nee. 

There are cheering evidences of individual converts 
carrying the glad tidings of salvation from ship to ship, 
until it was borne from one to two, three, four, five, and 
in one instance at least to nine different vessels by the 
same man. In one case two men were so impressed 
with the desire to bear the message where it had not yet 



WIDE DISPERSION OF THE CONVERTS. 353 

been heard, that they volunteered to leave their own ves- 
sel, in which they were surrounded by Christian brethren, 
and were in the enjoyment of all the facilities for doing 
and getting good, to isolate themselves from all these 
advantages, and go on board another — on the berth-deck 
of which there were no representatives of Christ ; thus 
exposing themselves not only to inconveniences, but to 
absolute persecution. Of this act of self-sacrifice I shall 
have occasion to speak hereafter. 

If the immediate effects of that religious awakening on 
board of the receiving ship had been all that was accom- 
plished, it would have taken rank as one of the most 
precious of the revivals of modern times, or indeed of any 
time, among the men of the sea. For the good work 
continued to be carried forward on board the same vessel 
for years, although not to the same extent. Yet all along 
though the following years, certainly up to 1865, there 
went forth to the various squadrons and armies of the 
United States, men who had been awakened on board 
the "Old North/' as she was familiarly called, and who 
by their influence carried the leaven of the Gospel into 
the naval and merchant service all over the world. In 
the revelation of the great day, I doubt not that the 
converts of the converts of that precious revival will be 
found to have reached in the ensuing seven years, to 
thousands. Many of them may be traced even now to 
the ends of the earth. A royal seed, bearing precious 
fruit, were the converts of that period. Who shall limit 
the productive energy of one earnest soul, in whom the 
quickening power of the Holy Spirit has taken up its 
abode ? As well might Ave attempt to compute the in- 
crease or limit the habitat of the floss- winged seed of the 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

thistle, which is borne on every wind and roots itself in 

ry soil. 

The following letters were written to me from the re- 
ceiving ship during the progress of the Revival, and as 
they are the utterances of the heart, will need no further 
introduction. One of the most reckless and abandoned 
of the crew of the North Carolina, who, for refusing 
obedience, insulting an officer, and striking a sentry, had 
been sentenced to ten years imprisonment, and who had 
been given up to all vices and crimes, writes: 

"Never before did anything make me feel so miserable as 
when you administered the Lord's Supper on board the ship. 
One of my shipmates told me to go to Jesus in prayer. I could 
not believe that Jesus would save so great a sinner as I. But 
when I read that His blood cleanseth from all sins, I went to 
Him, and I know now that he gives peace to our minds and 
strengthens us, if we only rely upon him. I feel now so happy 
that I would not exchange one month in the service of Christ 
for the whole thirty years of sinful pleasure. I hope he will 
be with us all, and give us strength to keep on in the holy 
path, that nothing may rob us of the crown of glory laid up 
for us in heaven. " 

Another, w r ho had been condemned and imprisoned 
for crime in Loando, being released, returned to this 
country, shipped in the navy, and finding himself among 
the recruits of the North Carolina, writes: 

•'One evening, while at prayer, I had a curious feeling at my 

heart, and scarce knew what to do with myself. When we knelt 

f prayed with all my heart to God to forgive me my sins, 

i praye 1 to Jesus t<> take- all my heart, and I would serve 

li Mid live. After the meeting was over, I felt 

within me, I could scarce refrain from going to my 



SEVERE WARNINGS. 355 

shipmates and telling them ; but they were all strangers to me, 
and I feared they would sneer at it, so I went to my hammock, 
praising God for his goodness to me, and I felt sure my sins were 
forgiven. On Saturday and Sunday, I read my Testament and 
lound comfort the more 1 read. On Monday afternoon I felt 
very sad, and wondered i( it was true or not, that I was trying to 
serve God. Still something told me not to despair. So I kept 
praying to God ail the afternoon, and when I went to bed at 
night, I prayed harder than ever I did before for Jesus to take all 
my heart, and 1 would love Him with all my soul and mind and 
strength. Next morning my mind was at ease, and since then I 
have felt such happiness and peace as I never felt before. Now 
I want to serve God as long as I live, for I never knew what a 
merciful God he was. I find that his service is better than rich- 
es, and it is getting easier to me every day. The more I read 
m; Bible the more I love my Saviour. " 

The writer of this still lives in the enjoyment of the 
hopes and promises which so cheered his repentant heart 
in the revival of twenty-five years ago. 

A third tells the story of his antecedents and of his 
recent change, thus : 

"I shipped a bright and happy boy, with golden visions of the 
future. I read my Bible and said my prayers, but, alas ! three 
months had not elapsed before I began to drink and riot with my 
wicked shipmates. I went rapidly down, until I became a 
drunken blasphemer. I shipped on board H. B. M. steamer 
Cleopatra, a twenty-gun sloop, for the Cape of Good Hope. I 
was there engaged, eighteen months in the Caffrc war. We sail- 
ed thence to China and the East Indies. While in the Bay of 
Bengal, taking in the top-gallant sails and lowering the top-sails in 
a squall, I fell overboard. A man from the main-yard called out, 
1 A man overboard ! ' The ship was rounded to. the lee-cut- 
ter lowered, and I was picked up. With God's help I had 
grasped the life buoy thrown to me. I then promised God if 



356 FIFTY VEARS AMONG sailors. 

he would let me escape death that time, I would serve hirn 
But 6ur from it, I forgot all about his goodness. 

11 The remainder of our cruise we were kept in hostilities with 
the Burmese in Rangoon, but, throughout my Heavenly Father 
bed over me with a tenderness and kindness that none but God 
can show. The cholera raged at the mouth of the Rangoon 
river, and out of two hundred and thirty men, we had one hun- 
dred and nine cases, and thirty-seven deaths. 

11 I returned to England a thousand times worse than ever. 
Thinking I had quite enough of the service, I changed to a 
merchant-man, but still hung on to my wicked ways. I have 
often wondered that God did not cut me off by death. For eight 
years I followed the merchant service, all the time living in sin, 
never having a spare shirt or coat to my back, owing to my 
drinking propensities. For full eight years I was a slave to the 
rumseller, but thanks to Almighty God my steps w^ere directed 
on board the North Carolina, and here I found my blessed Lord 
;\;iour Jesus Christ. 

A fourth acknowledges his indebtedness to the Holy- 
Spirit, who suggested that it was time to look after his 
soul, thus : 

"While lying in Mobile Bay, w r aiting for cotton, something 

me I must look after my soul, and I then commenced to 

•. Testament. I read it through, but I fear not in 

right way. Vet I thank God, I prayed to him and read 

of him, and I believe that Jesus has saved me, and it is all 

through your instruction. You helped me out of the pit of 

darkness, and may the Lord bless you.'' 

Another says: 

'• 1 thank God that my steps were directed on board the 

North Carolin I Lamed from you the way of salvation. 

i strengthen you, and may your prayers take root 

j time you come on board. I feel that it is good to seek 



SEVERE LESSON. 357 

the Lord and walk in his ways, for he says he will be a friend to 
us, whether at sea or on shore. One day, while my mind was 
filled with vain thoughts about the money I was to make and 
the great happiness I was to have, I fell down the fore -hatchway 
from the spar to the orlop deck. Thus I was taught the vanity 
of earthly things and the necessity of depending on God for life 
and health and everything we enjoy. 

Still another, who had tried various occupations before 
going to sea, among others that of a theatrical performer, 
writes from a merchant vessel, referring to a wonderful 
providence in his behalf which occurred on board the 
Anna Maria, on her return from the West Indies. He 
says : 

(l l was out on the flying jib-boom, with another man, try- 
ing to secure the flying jib, which had gotten adrift. We were 
running under a three-reefed foresail, before a north-west gale. 
We found we could not do anything with the sail, and my com- 
panion started inboard. I watched him until he got very near 
in, then I gave it up also, and moved inboard too. I had just 
got off the foot-ropes and seized hold of the standing jib-stay, 
when the vessel made a plunge into the sea. I hung on for life. 
When she rose again the jib-boom was under the bows. One 
moment later and both of us would have been in eternity. 

1 ' The next day we shipped a sea, while lying to, which car- 
ried away the galley and washed me and the same man over- 
board. I don't know why I was not killed, for I could not see 
anything to keep me from being crushed between the galley and 
the rail, as I was leaning against it at the time. I prayed a little 
after that, but soon forgot who saved me in that trying hour. 
Had we been running when I was washed overboard, I would 
certainly have been lost, as we had no boat, and the vessel could 
not work in such a sea. 

"At last the voyage was up, and I was safe in New York. I 
resolved to reform, but soon broke my resolutions, and forgot 



358 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

1 was sick and taken to the hospital, where I met with 
Mr. Byrne, the sailor missionary. I never saw such a man in 
my life — he was talking all the time, when he could get any one 
ilk to. I was much annoyed by his persistency. I had no ob- 
jections to his preaching, but not in the ward. I could not read 
vp — and I thank God I could not. Tuesday night I went 
to the temperance meeting in the chapel, and Wednesday night 
went to class- meeting. When I came out I kneeled down by 
my cot and gave myself away to God. I have had many secret 
seasons of enjoyment since then." 

Shortly after the above, I received the following from 
a merchant ship lying in Antwerp. The writer was a 
member of our church who had been redeemed from a life 
of drunkenness, and was awakened under my preaching. 
He writes : 

' ' I have been very fortunate, thanks to God, for all his mer- 
cies, in getting a good ship. I learned that the mate was a pro- 
fessor of religion, and on the second Sabbath out I asked him to 
preside over our services. He consented, and we had a very 
pleasant meeting. There were six of us present. I am sorry to 
say that the mate did not continue the good work. H — and I 
have meetings by ourselves, therefore, in the night-watches, when 
I have the lookout We meet on the forecastle, and pray and 
hymns, and 1 hope the Lord has blessed them to our good. 
he says, ' If two of you shall agree on earth as touching any- 
thing th it they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father 
i is in heaven.' I showed my colors on the second day out, 
and told my shipmates that I had shipped in the good ship Zion, 
( nine what may, I was determined to steer, with God's help, 
lible. I have stood a good deal of chaffing about my rc- 
i ry one seems to be watching me, to catch me trip- 
(t>r they think that when a man turns to be religious, he 
must be absolutely perfect I am certainly not perfect, but I 
strive to give them no hold on me. I read my Bible every day, 



GOD HAD MERCY ON ME. 359 

and pray to God to pour out his Holy Spirit upon me, that I 
mav grow in grace, and walk in his ways more freely. Pray for 
us.'" 

After describing a cyclone in the Mediterranean, in 
which everything was given up for lost, and during which 
he prayed for mercy and deliverance, a chief-mate says: 

" Alas, I soon forgot my prayers and vows!" 

On a subsequent voyage, in a barque to South Amer- 
ica, being attacked with sickness, he was shut up in his 
cabin five weeks. While there, he read the tracts which 
the second mate had given him, and they produced con- 
viction. He says, " What could I do ? I prayed to God 
and gave my heart to him, and promised never to forget 
him again. My days passed lonesome, and my nights 
were troubled with dreams, but God had mercy upon 
me, and I pray continually that he will keep me from sin." 

Another writes, on the eve of sailing : 

1 ' Dear Sir — I wrote to inform you, that I feel myself, by the 
grace of God, a renewed man. I have devoted myself, and send 
up my prayers to God, whom I acknowledge to be supreme over 
all the world. I have been a very wicked sinner, but I believe 
there is hope for even me. For the last eight or nine years, I 
have been not only serving the devil, but have been fighting the 

pel of God, and opposing the servants of the church. Yet 
God is merciful to me. He has many times warned me of my 
danger, but I hardened my heart, time after time, going deeper 
and deeper into sin, until it pleased him to send his servant after 
me to show me my doom, if I still persisted in my sin ; and I am 
now determined to thank and praise his holy name forever. I 
fear not the world. Man may take my body and destroy it, but 
he cannot touch my soul. I only hope that God will spare me 
a little longer. I pray to him for this — that I may know that 1 



360 FIFTY VEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

aved through the blood of Jesus Christ, who died on the 
that I might haw everlasting life. I hope, on my return, to 
find a good boarding-house, where I shall hear the word of God 
instead of die blasphemy of the devil. I pray to God to watch 
over me, and guard me from evil thoughts and ways, and blot out 
forever all my iniquities ; and that he will bless you, and all the 

mbly in the Mariners' church." 

The next is from the captain of a vessel. It illustrates 
the reflex influence of the good work on board the re- 
ceiving ship, and is dated at sea, July, 1859. He says : 

" I want to tell you a little about the struggle I had with my- 
self. I did not feel quite certain what my duty was. I am so 
weak and have so little wisdom and confidence in myself, that it 
seemed a mountain. But I have been to my Heavenly Father 
with it, and feel that I must go forward, and do me best I can. 
So I called the men aft and told them I did not want any swear- 
ing and that at six o'clock every evening there would be prayers 
in the cabin. I would be glad to see them all there, but would 
not compel them. One said 'he would as soon be there as 
anywhere/ The mate called them aft at six, and to my sur- 
•, every man on board, except the man at the wheel, came in. 
I read the 18th chapter of Luke. They were all very attentive, 
and when I Knelt in prayer, they all, except the officers, knelt 

me. Oh, that I might see every one of them Christians ! 

that I may so live before them that they will know that I 
want them all to be God's children. On the 10th, I read the 
15th and 1 7th chapters of John — also, an account of the meetings 
on board the North Carolina, to which they all listened very 
attentively. Never did I feel my own weakness as I do now. 
In God is all my strength, and I do know he has helped me : to 
him be all the praise." 



CHAPTER XVII. 

A GRACIOUS PROVIDENCE — U. S.R. S. OHIO— THE SINNER. 

Scenes re-enacted — Man proposes, God disposes — The Pentecostal gift — A 
minister's son — New use for sweat boxes — Devoted to the ministry — 
bailor a curiosity — Ordained deacon — Happy day — Depth of mercy — 
Effect of a sermon — Tribute of praise — A mother's influence — Cause and 
effect — A focal point — A father's last words — Home memories — A 
hungry soul — A mother's prayer answered — Love cannot die — Promo- 
tion — Again on the orlop-deck— Last request — " Introduce me to Jesus " 
— The sinner — Sceptical queries — A mother's tears — Heart troubled — 
" Behold, he prayeth " — A brief abstract — Dies among his kindred. 

It was a very gracious providence, that, in October, 
1858, called for the transfer of two hundred and thirty- 
naval recruits from the receiving ship Ohio, in Boston, 
to the North Carolina, in New York. By their removal 
they were unwittingly brought within the sphere of the 
Divine influence, that many of them might be eternally 
saved. It is not implied in this expression that the 
United States' naval authorities intended to bring about 
any such beneficent result ; but merely to record the fact, 
that numbers were saved as the sequence of that transfer, 
and being saved, were returned six months afterwards, 
to the ship whence they came. These men, in the ensuing 
April, carrying within them the Divine life, were permit- 
ted to re-enact the scenes of*the Old North, on the berth- 
deck of the Ohio, whence, together with others, who 
were born of God, through their agency, they were sent 

3 61 16 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

forth to scatter the divine seed to the ends of the 
earth. Surely Jehovah is a wonder-working God! 
Who could have predicted the blessed results flowing 
from that removal ? 

J. A. Morris has told us that in that draft there was 
not one, when they left Boston, who took the name of 
Christ Jesus on his lips, except in blasphemy. Behold the 
mercy of our God ! A carping critic may be led to ask, 
with indignation, to what purpose is this waste ? Why 
send these men to New York, and keep them on pay for six 
months, only to send them all back again ? The proper 
response to such questions is, " God willed it." " Man 
proposes, God disposes." The delightful meeting in the 
saloon of the steamer, on the passage to Boston, is evi- 
dence of this. 

But the Divine wisdom is still further manifest in the 
good work continued on board the Ohio, where many 
souls were born again, and became themselves instru- 
mental in the conversion of their shipmates, some of 
whom bore aloft the banner of Christ during the entire 
cruise of three years on the coast of Africa, as did others 
in the various sea-ports of China and Japan. Nor was 
this all. The Pentecostal gift was carried by renewed 
hearts through all the squadrons of the U. S. Navy, and 
to many divisions of the army, from that time forward 
until the close of the war. The full extent of their influ- 
ence, it will be impossible either to measure or compute. 

The brethren who remained on board the Ohio kept 
me informed of the progress, character, and extent of 
the work carried forward among them. A few days after 
they were comfortably located, I went on to Boston, and 
on Sunday, the 8th of May, preached on board the Ohio, 



A MINISTER'S SON. 363 

to a very large and attentive audience. The word 
spoken was manifestly blessed of God, and souls were 
awakened from the sleep of death, as subsequent cor- 
respondence clearly indicated. 

After reaching home, I received the following, from J 
B. L., dated May 10th, 1859: 

" My Dear Pastor — I am rejoiced that you came on to see 
us. You can have no idea of the benefit derived from your visit 
— not to the brethren alone, but to others. We had a good 
meeting last night. The young minister who accompanied you, 
spent the evening with us. N. and G. have taken a bold stand 
on the Lord's side. N. is twenty-one years old ; has been four 
years and a half at sea ; is the son of a minister. G. has been 
fifteen years at sea. Both are English, and both were converted 
here. They have accepted our confession of faith, which was 
read to them according to your instructions. 

' ' Oh, my dear pastor, it makes my blood run cold when I look 
back upon my past life, stained by every vice ! My example has 
done much harm. I have been a drunkard, a swearer, a gam- 
bler — in short, everything contrary to the law of God ; and yet, 
after all, He has been pleased to forgive me. I have now that 
blessed hope. Oh that I may be permitted to do something for 
Him who has done so much for me I" 

Three days later he writes : 

1 ' We have delightful meetings on board. Three more have 
taken the decisive step, and others are inquiring the way to the 
cross. I am in receipt of yours of the nth inst., and a letter 
from the Portsmouth. Several of the brethren have been as- 
signed to her. They are, the writer tells me, truly happy. The 
captain has given them permission to pray as much as they like. 
The first lieutenant has loaned them one of the sweat-boxes* for a 

* These instruments of torture — the invention of which is worthy of the 
genius ot a Torquemada — were dark closets, about six feet high by two 
and a-half wide, made ju.^t deep enough for a man to stand upright in 



364 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

library case. 1 hope and pray that the whole of them may be 
• crwd to the same use. Would it not be joyful to be in a 
ship where the whole crew were Christians? I long to see the 
day when the sailor will assume and maintain his true place in 
society. " 

I may add here, as evincing the permanency of the 
blessed influence, that the dear brother who wrote this 
left the navy a few weeks after this date, and devoted 
himself to the work of the ministry. He commenced a 
course of study to that end, and entered Nashota College, 
Michigan, whence he wrote to me from time to time. In 
a letter written in December, 1859, ne says* 

"A sailor seems to be a curiosity in this region, judging from 
the amazement of some of them when I told them that I had 
ploughed the deep for more than ten years. They do not seem 
to understand that a sailor can become a Christian. How great 
the contrast between my life now and one year ago ! Then I 
was hard and fast on board the guard-ship, not knowing that I 
had a friend in the world. Now, I am surrounded by hosts of 
them. Ought not I to be thankful to our Heavenly Father for 
his love and kindness to me ? Oh, how I long for the time 
when I shall go forth as one of the messengers of his love \" 

Our brother continued his studies until the breaking 
out of the rebellion. He then entered the southern army. 
At the close of the war, he resumed his studies, and as 
his sister informed me, under date of June 7th, 1 880, was 

them, and allow the door to close. A few auger holes in the upper part 
Df the door, to admit air, were the only apertures. For trifling faults men 
A'crc enclosed in these coffins for as many hours as the passion or judgment 
of the petty despot of the quarter-deck might determine. From these, at 
the expiration of the sentence, men were often taken out so prostrated by 
v .hcir entombment, as to require the offices of the ship's surgeon to resusci- 
tate them. I believe the use of them is now forbidden. 



A HAPPY DAY. 365 

in due time ordained deacon of the Episcopal Church. 
She adds : 

"We who loved him and appreciated all that was noble in 
him, had marked out for him a bright and useful career in the 
future. But God ordered it otherwise. He went to Texas ; and 
while on a return visit to his home, contracted a fever which 
eventuated in his death in the spring of 1879. 

One of the seamen referred to by brother L •, 

wrote me from the Ohio : 

" I assure you, dear pastor, it was a happy day for me when 
an old shipmate of mine invited me to go down with him to the 
prayer-meeting. I was astonished to find him a Christian, and 
to hear him speak of the preciousness of Jesus to his soul. I 
there and then made a resolution to go myself to Jesus. At the 
close of the service I signed the pledge, determined to drink no 
more. At the next gathering, I arose and confessed Christ as my 
Saviour. A load was lifted from my heart. I felt happier than 
I had ever been before. I retired to my hammock and prayed. 
I have been praying ever since. I feel like a new-born soul. 
Henceforth let others do as they will ; I am determined to serve 
God. I love the word of God now. I never could bear to read 
it before. I pray the Holy Spirit to enlighten me, that I may 
understand all I read." 

The minister's son, referred to above as N — , wrote me, 
rejoicing over his conversion, which he considered would 
be a blessing to his parents, as well as to himself. He 
had been apprenticed to a business with which he soon 
became disgusted, and determined to go to sea. His 
mother was broken-hearted, his father inconsolable. 
But they reluctantly gave their consent, and he shipped 
in 1 85 3 for Melbourne, N. S. W. From this date, he 
says: 



306 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

"My career of wickedness commenced. 

1 Depth of mercy, can there be 
Mercy for a wretch like me V 

"Oh yes, there can be, there is. I know it, I feel it. From 
ourne I went to India and China. Was absent over two 
years. In all this time, while conscience was doing her work, I 
plunging deeper and deeper into sin. 'No peace, saith my 
God, to the wicked/ So I found it. The thought of death and 
the despair o[ my broken-hearted mother haunted me. I drank, 
drank deep, to drow r n my sorrow. But, thank God, all that is 
now changed I go now to my Saviour's feet and pour out my 
woes there. He alone can hear, and can give comfort to a poor 
outcast mortal. The afternoon you preached on board the 
Ohio. I had a hard struggle between the voice of conscience and 
the pride and shame of my own heart. I thank God now that 
the struggle is over. I feel a peace the world can neither give nor 
take away. I have laid my burden upon Christ, and I know 
that he has borne it away. Whatever of persecution I may have 
to endure, I am resolved to bear patiently for him who died for 
me, a poor miserable sinner. I will endeavor to lead others into 
th right way. I have nailed my colors to the mast, determined, 

I divine assistance, to gain the victory over the world, the 

flesh and the devil, or perish in the attempt. I hope, as you 

been the means in the hand of God, of my finding peace 

with God, through our Lord Jesus Christ, that you will continue 

to pray for me, that I may prove faithful unto death." 

Another reports later; 

11 We arc earning on our evening meetings. New faces are 
ait every night, and from the interest manifested, I think a 

lly number of souls may yet be saved. R and I expect 

in the Portsmouth with other brethren. Do not forget 
to pray for ns. w 

Nearly two months later, the work of grace was still 
progressing. A brother wrote : 



A MOTHER'S INFLUENCE. 367 

"The Hartford's brethren have all things arranged to commence 
their meeting, and are desirous of having a library to take with 
them. The carpenter of the ship is a godly man, and has taken 
great interest in the welfare of the church members. " 

Still another from the same ship wrote : 

" Dear Pastor — It is with heart-felt gratitude to God, in the 
first place, who has called me out of darkness into his marvel- 
lous light, that I here record my tribute of praise. I thank you 
also, whom he has blessed as the instrument in bringing me to 
what I am. His mercies to me, an unworthy worm, are many. 
Glory to his most holy name ! I look on my past life and shud- 
der, as I recall the many warnings I received, and the many 
calls he has sent, to turn my erring footsteps into the right way, 
all of which I suffered to pass unheeded. I thank him that I 
was led to listen to the call that you sounded in my ears. I be- 
lieve that if I had rejected that, I should never have had another." 

He closes by praying for all who are engaged in efforts 
to bring in the wandering mariners to the path of virtue 
and peace. 

A mother's influence. 

Some rare Christians were on board the old North 
Carolina. Many of these are living and exerting an in- 
fluence for Christ at the present day. Yet how little do 
we know of the causes that wrought together to produce 
such great effects. How many lines of prayerful interest, 
from all lands, centred on that orlop deck, we shall 
perhaps never know. Here and there only, we can trace 
a connection between an effect, and, what we n«ay desig- 
nate as the remote or the proximate cause whence it orig- 
inated. How many mothers have careless sons at sea ! 
How devoutly they pray to their covenant God in Christ 
for these sons ! Is it wonderful then that when so many 



368 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

of those wandering heirs of eternal life were gathered as 
materia] for the coming war, on board the North Caro- 
lina, she should become the focal point in which these 
prayers met ; or that she should become the recruiting 
centre for the army of the Prince of Peace. Into that 
godless company, there collected, in 1858 and 1859, 
many objects of maternal affection and sympathy were 
brought, in the order of Divine Providence, that they 
might be born again in response to their mothers' prayers. 
The conversion of one such is here given by way of il- 
lustration. His own narrative, as he wrote it twenty-five 
years ago, is here appended. It teaches us that the in- 
fluence of a Christian mother is the same in every land. 
The writer was converted amid those blessed revival 
scenes. He states : 

" I was born in Wurtemburg, on the borders of Austria. My 
father was a soldier, and had command of a station of land police. 
As far as his duty permitted, he lived quietly at home. Eaithly 
pleasures had no charm for him. His time was divided between 
his king, his family, and his Father in heaven. He taught his 
children to love Jesus and to walk in the way of life. My dear, 
good mother was a praying woman. Well do I remember how, 
on her knees, she entreated me, a wild, careless boy, to alter 
my way of life. I shed bitter tears now as I call to mind the sor- 
rows I caused my dear parents ; for they both loved me very 
much, in spite of my wickedness, and at great expense educated 
me for usefulness in this life, and for the life to come. But I 
way to a life of recklessness. In my fourteenth year I enter- 
ed the office of the mayor of the city to study law. I remained 
with him a year, and made some progress in my studies. But I 
went on from sin to sin, and in 1854 concluded to leave home, 
become a sailor, and go to the United States. My parents at first 
Opposed my purpose, but afterwards, committing the matter to 



a father's last words. 369 

God, gave their consent. Having their blessing, and the prayers 
of my brothei*s and sisters, I took my departure. I shall never 
forget the parting scene. My father's last words to me were, 
1 My son, always keep God in your heart, and before your eyes. ' 
My mother's counsel was, ' Never be weary of praying. ' These 
precious words still ring in my ears. Since then I have looked 
death in the face, many, many times, yet my heart became so har- 
dened, that tender letters from home, even failed to induce me 
to forsake my sins. Eventually I came on board this vessel. 
Here it was, in the orlop deck, that the kind advice of my par- 
ents came back to me with great force. Here my trangressions 
were brought before my eyes, and in the agony of my soul I 
cried out, ' Father, have mercy ! Oh, have mercy ! ' It was on 
board this ship, in my hammock, that I promised to serve God 
forever. That evening, in the fore-peak, remembering my dear 
mother's prayers, I offered a broken heart to God, and I 
know that he accepted it, because he has said, 'him that 
cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. ' My soul is hungry for 
the love of God, and the sympathy of my Saviour, Jesus Christ. 
I pray for his Holy Spirit, that I may avoid sin, and never, by 
my example, induce others to trespass against him. I long in- 
dulged in the pleasures of this world. But now my eyes are 
opened. My attention is fixed on objects more durable, even 
those which will last forever and ever. How can I be thankful 
enough to God for his mercies toward me ? How shall I praise 
him for his Holy Spirit, who teaches me his holy word ? I can 
now look forward to death, not with fear and trembling, but 
with longing desire. When death comes, if God will loose my 
stammering tongue, my thanks and my praises shall sound for- 
ever and ever. 

" How glorious it will be to meet father and mother, brothers 
and sisters, before the throne of the Lamb slain for us, where we 
shall separate no more, but shall ascribe glory and power to the 
Lamb for all eternity ! As I look back over my past life, I now 
see the wonderful working of that Providence which took me 
16* 



3/0 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

out from a comfortable home, and into the midst of a life of 
cares and troubles, that 1 might he brought to my senses, and 
return, like the prodigal son, to my Father's house. My moth- 
er s prayers are answered. I know that no day passes without 
prayer ascending in my behalf. 

u Serving God is now the delight of my soul. Sometimes a 
squall o[ temptation breaks over me, but I go to Jesus. He 
will never forsake me. I am a living monument of the grace of 
God. With the help of God I will continue on in the good path 
which leads to that rest, where sorrow and cares are no more." 

It is my privilege to testify that the good promises 
made by our brother are being now fulfilled, twenty-five 
years after they were made. Having passed through the 
war of the Rebellion with honor, and risen from before the 
mast to be ensign in the U. S. Navy, he was at the close of 
the war appointed to a lieutenancy in the U. S. Revenue 
Marine service. In that capacity he is now serving (Dec. 
1883), with the promise of a command. But what is bet- 
ter than all earthly preferment, he still walks with Christ, 
maintains a Christian profession on board his vessel, and 
is anticipating the hour of a full discharge, with a sublime 
Christian confidence in the promises of the Word. In a 
letter to me, dated October 24, 1 880, he writes: 

" Your letter of the 12th gives me great pleasure. It con- 
vinces me that all have not forgotten me. As for my remember- 
in- you, how can I allow to slip from my memory any person 
nected with the never-to-be-forgotten time of 1858-9, on 
1 the Old North ? I think of you often and gratefully, for 
labor among us at that time. I still cling to the Saviour, 
who in his love and mercy then remembered me as one of the 
at <>f his fold. Why am I so blessed as to be called by 
him, as I am one of the weakest of his followers? But who can 
fathom the love and long-suffering of our Heavenly Father? It 



AGAIN ON THE ORLOP-DECK. 37 1 

is he who commenced the good work in me, and my comfort is 
that I know he cannot leave his work unfinished, so I struggle 
along in my weakness, trusting to him for strength. I am still 
permitted to call my Creator my Father. Who can comprehend 
his love for me ? 

''Twenty-two years makes some change in a man's appear- 
ance. You may not remember my looks. But I thank God 
that he has enabled you to keep a place in your heart for me. 
I have thought of you often, as one afar off ; but receiving your 
letters seems to me like a coming home out of some strange 
land. I speculate much on the meetings in the hereafter. For 
surely the love which God puts in our hearts for others cannot 
die. Yes, God's arrangements are best. Absence from my fam- 
ily and the discomforts of a sea-going life may cause me some- 
times to complain, but when I remember what I w r as, and think 
of what I hope to be, I can only say, ' Who am I, O Lord, that 
thou, in thy mercy, shouldst remember me ?' I am fully alive to 
my own unworthiness, and to his great love for me. I deplore 
my own want of love to him and my inability to do anything 
involving sacrifice of myself. I look at my men, and ask my- 
self the question, ' How can I do them any good for my Mas- 
ter's sake ?' What is my example ? Speak for Jesus ? Yes, 
whenever opportunity offers itself. And yet, after all, what do I 
do for Him ? I cry over lost opportunities. Want of trust and 
faith. Your prayers for me, (i Thess. v. 23), I stand in great 
need of. May the very God of peace sanctify me wholly. There 
is so much of the world hanging like a heavy load on me, that 
His long-suffering is a marvel. 

1 ' I live over again the scenes of long ago. How often do I think 
of that time, and am again on the orlop-deck, close by the old 
wheel, or chock forward in the eyes of her. And then, after we 
left the ' North,' our little gatherings between two guns on the 
starboard side during our cruise in the Portsmouth. On reflec- 
tion, I am astonished at the long-suffering of my God, and pray 
to him to let me see more of his great love for weak and sinful 



37- FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

men, that my life may be one act of thanksgiving, and all my 
doings be to his glory. Your quotations from Proverbs iii. 6 : 
4 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths,' 
has been the foundation of my prayer almost constantly of late. 
My cry to him is, ' Let me keep close to thee, or I am lost/ I 
took a firmer stand on his side this season, and you know that 
such a course is easily noticed by one's shipmates. There is no 
one here with whom I can freely talk of these things, and hearing 
from you gives me new courage — knowing you as I do, and 
being sure of your prayers in my behalf. Please write again. 
Your letters help me. 

"Faithfully yours, A. B." 

THE LAST EARTHLY REQUEST. 

The brevity and uncertainty of life is nowhere so fully 
and frequently made manifest as it is in our intercourse 
with the men who go down to the sea in ships. So 
many poor fellows go forth from us in the full vigor of life, 
never to return. Of some we receive tidings, and learn 
the times and manner of their taking off. From others 
there comes no message, their future history is a blank, 
to be filled up only by the records of the Great Day. 

The following brief epistle is from a young man who 
united with my church on the 6th of March, 1859. 
Twelve days after his connection with the church mil- 
itant, he sailed for the southern coast. Within five short 
months he joined the church triumphant, above. His 
last earthly request is here recorded. It is dated March 
1 8th, 1859, and reads thus: 

' Dear Sir — Leaving New York in haste, I regret not having 
time to call on you in person. I only write now to inform you 
of my feelings of respect and friendship which now exist and 
ever dial! exist for you. I am going out as steward of the barque 



' A LAST REQUEST. 373 

American Eagle. I shall carry with me, deeply implanted in 
my heart, the many acts of kindness which you have shown 
me. I am bound for Galveston, Texas, and now bid you adieu, 
hoping you may live long to benefit your fellow- men. I would 
ask as a favor, that you and my fellow-members of the Mariners' 
church would remember me in your prayers, and invoke the 
blessing of God on the sea-tossed mariner. Should that God 
whom I adore, see fit to take me to heaven, I pray that I may 
meet you and all the members of our church in a better world, 
where moth and rust do not corrupt our treasures nor do 
1 thieves break through and steal. ' 

" Yours with respect, W. V." 

All that was heard of our young brother after this, was 
that he was sent ashore sick, in Havana, on tht> 1:9th of 
July, and died of yellow fever on the 2nd of August. Just 
four months and twenty-seven days from his union with 
the church on earth, he joined " the general assembly of 
the first-born, whose names are written in heaven." 

In the month of April, an incident occurred, which, 
while it is but one of many of like character in the gen- 
eral, has some details which possess peculiar interest, as 
much for its own individual importance, in illustrating 
the sovereignty of the Divine Spirit, in having mercy 
" on whom he will have mercy," as for the wide-spread 
influence exerted by the subject of it, both in the navy and 
in the army, during the rebellion. 

A German sailor, who had held a command in the 
Schleswig-Holstein war of 1848 and 185 1, was trans- 
ferred with the rank of lieutenant, to the Prussian navy, 
and appointed naval instructor in a training ship for 
midshipmen. Subsequently he became a gambler and a 
duellist, and finally sunk from the command of a man- 
of-war to the level of a sailor before the mast. He was at 



374 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

the lowest point in his descent, when he came under my 
notice. An expression of his own, while under deep con- 
viction of sin, will serve as a caption to this narrative. 
It was : 

" INTRODUCE ME TO JESUS !" 
That seamen have not been thoroughly understood, 
and as a consequence not fully appreciated, is an assertion 
that needs no proof. " He is only a sailor," has often 
9erved to quiet a clamoring conscience, to excuse an inex- 
cusable timidity, to justify an unjust conclusion, or to 
discourage, and paralyze effort, which if put forth might 
have proved successful in winning souls. 

If a cause for this want of appreciation be sought, it 
may be found in the general ignorance of the real traits 
of the sailor character. This ignorance arises from two 
causes. First, from the fact that his life at sea is known 
only to his roving companions, and that on shore only 
the worst features of his character are thrust prominently 
forward as a result of the predominance of his unre- 
strained passions and appetites, and the low character of 
his surroundings. Secondly, because the church of God 
has never yet fully realized his personal need of a 
iour, nor been sufficiently interested to inquire into 
his fitness for, or the necessity and importance of his 
co-operation, as a factor, in the work of evangelizing the 
world. 

men, as a class, are by no means so low, either 
intellectually or socially as they are supposed to be. For 
under a rough and ungainly exterior, there often lurks 
not only a warm, affectionate and benevolent heart, but 
also an intellectual ability, a business capacity and a gen- 
tlemanly, polite and chivalrous nature, which are wanting 



" INTRODUCE ME TO JESUS." 375 

in many on shore, whose opportunities and advantages 
have been far superior to theirs. The dull, the stupid, 
the timid, the nerveless and the inefficient, are not the boys 
who go to sea. Nor are they who are driven from home 
by a spirit of adventure and desire for freedom from 
restraint, necessarily of low standing, socially. The very 
reverse of this is full often the case. An impatience of 
control, an unwillingness to be fettered by parental or 
academical requirements, and a desire to recover health, 
has sent many an educated and disciplined mind, many a 
fervid imagination, and many an energetic, and resolute 
soul to sea. Richard Dana, the author of " Two Years 
before the Mast," and Herman Melville, of Typee fame, 
are cases in point. It is not claimed that the majority 
of seamen will come up to this standard; but that many do, 
and that the number of the intelligent, the efficient, the 
thoughtful among them, is far greater than many sup- 
pose. Seamen's chaplains who have been for years in 
correspondence with them, who have gained their confi- 
dence, and have learned their inward mind, could throw 
much light on this subject if their experience were 
brought out. Too much of this evidence, however, is lost, 
either because it is not deemed prudent to publish confi- 
dential communications, or because, if divested of privacy, 
such points of interest as might be useful, find no channel 
through which they may be utilized. 

Without the fear of violating any confidence, and with 
the assurance that the very channel needed is afforded by 
these pages, I present the following narrative, as illustrat- 
ing points of character sometimes met with among 
seamen, and as introducing another of those biographical 
sketches, for the details of which I am indebted to the 



3;6 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

men themselves ; though it must be admitted that they 
were written without any idea of their ever appearing in 
print. 

The subject of this sketch, as I have said, was a sailor 
before the mast. While passing the Mariners' church, 
OH Sabbath evening, April 17, 1859, on his way, as I 
afterward learned from his own lips, to a lager bier 
saloon in the Bowery, he was arrested by the singing. 
Curiosity led him to enter and listen to the preaching 
of the Gospel. I had administered the Lord's Supper 
that afternoon, on board the North Carolina ; and on 
returning to my own church, with my soul all aglow with 
love for poor perishing sinners, I preached from the 
words, " God be merciful to me a sinner/' Luke xviii. 13. 
I had the barest scrap of a skeleton that evening, and do 
not remember much of what I said, save that I called 
attention to the fact that this prayer was " acceptable 
worship ;" that it was expressive, (1.) Qf a sense of sin, 
which, like faith, is common to all who come aright to 
God. (2.) Confession of sin; personal unworthiness. 
(3.) Sorrow for sin ; a godly sorrow that will never need 
to be repented of. (4.) An acknowledgment that God is 
the only source of help. I also spoke of the prayer 
being characterized by humility, simplicity and self- 
loathing; and as being a direct personal appeal, which 
every one has need to make to God. I called attention 
in closing to the fact that in the original, the definite 
article is written before the word sinner, and I deduced 
from that, the conclusion, that a true conception of the 
heinousness ofour sins would lead us to sympathize with 
Paul, who acknowledged himself the very chief of sinners ; 
and with this publican, who, instead of vaunting his 



THE SINNER. ^J 

goodness, like the Pharisee, cried, as he beat on his 
breast, " God be merciful to me, the sinner !" 

That this idea impressed our German sailor, will 
appear in his letter to me, which I received a day 
or two afterwards. This letter is certainly a very orig- 
inal and a very frank communication. In it he claims to 
be " the sinner/ ' An attempt to abbreviate it, or 
change its form, would only destroy its idiomatic individ- 
uality, and serve to lessen its value. It is dated April 
1 8th, the day following the sermon, and runs thus : 

■ ' Most Reverend Sir — I attended your service last night and 
did not lose a word you said. I had a strange feeling in me, 
which I cannot account for. Perhaps I am the greatest sinner 
of the whole congregation there assembled ; although I never 
committed sins or crimes which would be punished by the law. 
If one has to pray, ' God be merciful to me the sinner/ it is me ; 
and I would pray so, most sincerely, if my mind was not dis- 
turbed with doubts which I cannot dispel. You said everybody 
might come to you* for instruction. I stand in great need of it. 
So I come to you, and pray you to clear my mind of these 
doubts, and convince me of facts I cannot understand. I lay 
my thoughts open to you. 

1 ' I have not been in any church, except from curiosity, since 
I went to sea, some twenty years ago. Although of very pious 
parents, I do not recollect having prayed to God since my boy- 
hood, when I prayed before my mother. I never went to com- 
munion but once, and that was the day after I was confirmed. 
I saw on that day, the same person who in the morning gave me 
the bread and wine, in the evening, intoxicated ; and my young 
mind imagined that he might have been drinking of the same 
wine he administered to me in the Holy Sacrament. Ever since 
that time I have had an aversion to ministers, and especially to 
Catholic priests, as I have seen so many of them look upon their 
vocation as a trade, which they exercise for money, when then 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

very actions contradict their words. I know it is not the bread 
and wine of the Communion thai dors it, but it is the faith in 
it. I have no faith in this. How can this benefit the soul of 
mail ? when he may think, at the same time lie takes the wine, 
perhaps the parson has been bargaining for this wine, where he 
could get it cheapest This same wine he may put on his own 
table for his sensual wants. I know that Jesus ordered this Com- 
munion, but was Jesus really the Son of God? That is the 
question I cannot solve. He said, a true Christian must believe 
in the Bible as the word of God. I confess I never owned a 
Bible since I went from home, and I never felt the need of it; so 
I don't know much about it, excepting what I learned in my 
childhood. But I have read the works of theologians, who 
plainly showed there were many contradictions in the Bible. 

" God, in his perfection, never can contradict himself; how, 

therefore, can it be the word of God ? Is there not an untruth 

in the Bible, in the very beginning of it, when it says that Adam 

was the first man in the creation ? How could Cain, after he had 

D his brother Abel, go into another land and take unto him- 

a wife there ? It says, we all came from Adam. How is it 

ible when th~re is so many races ? I will only allude to the 

» race. Where did those islands of Australia, which never 

have been a part of ' terra firma/ get their population ? I 

would to God that I could believe in the Bible, and have some 

faith on which to build my hopes of salvation. But this faith I 

have not, for I do not believe in the Bible. 

" This brings me again to my first question, * Is Jesus really 

the Son of Gpd? 1 In the works I referred to, this question is 

I with ' No I* And it is my belief. He was a man like 

US, but a pi<>u.^ and great man, who was sincere in his wish and 

in hi- striving to build up another religion which he thought the 

tified his sincerity, and his wish to bring the human 

kind to the only true faith, to the adoration of the only one God, 

jihil. What guarantee have we to believe that he 

was the Son <»i God? What guarantee is there that we should 



THE HEART TROUBLED. 379 

believe in all the wonders which he performed, and his disciples 
after him ? Why cannot we think that all these recounted won- 
ders are written down to induce the readers by it to embrace 
Christianity ? 

"The Bible has been translated into so many different lan- 
guages : who can say that all the translations are correct ? Who 
can swear what God did first when he created the world ? The 
Bible tells you the transactions of every day, tells you the history 
of the human kind, then living, when they knew nothing of 
writing. Can it be the traditions that went from father to son, 
from generation to generation, that we put our belief in ? How 
these traditions, thousands of years old, may be disfigured ! But 
still the Bible tells them to us, and in the Bible we must believe, 
as it is the foundation of our faith, and the word of God. I 
often think about these things till my heart and head grow dizzy. 

"The Bible speaks of a future life — of the last day of judg- 
ment, of heavenly reward, and of eternal damnation in hell. Are 
there really such things ? Does our own soul live until the day 
of judgment comes ? or does it taste of the promised happiness of 
the repentant sinner, and the punishment of the unrepentant 
sinner ? What is hell ? There cannot be a place of torture be- 
yond this world, because if there were, God could not be all- 
forgiving and all-loving. I have formed my belief that there is 
no future life, and that which is spoken of hell and happiness 
lies in our own conscience ; which, therefore, ends with our own 
life. Our souls are immortal ? Why not believe that our souls 
are transferred to a being on another planet, and so on and on, 
until we are purified and prepared to stand before the face of 
God? 

" Deity cannot sin or be tempted. But are not the men in 
the image of God tempted, even by Deity itself? — as it planted 
the germ of evil in the hearts of men and it made the paths of 
virtue narrow, rugged and full of privations, where the path to 
vice is smooth and broad and full of pleasures. Why has Provi- 
dence made these two paths at least alike, that a man may be in 



3S0 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

I t i tread the path of virtue ? If Jesus was the Son of 
I, how could he be tempted of the Evil Spirit, under which, I 
Understand Jesus' own thoughts and reflections at that time? 
II..W could he cry to God that the chalice might pass from his 
lips? How could he exclaim, 'God, my God ! why hast thou 
iken me?' The Son of God must have been irreproachable, 
without stain. How could he lose his trust, his confidence in 
his own Father? When God actually wrought wonders at that 
time to bring mankind to the true faith, why does he not do it 
now? — to unite us all — Mussulman, Jew, and Catholic in the 
true Church ? If we shall believe in a future life, why does he 
not allow the souls of our departed friends to come to us, and 
give us assurance that there is a place of punishment and reward ? 
Would not this be the best way to lead the sinner to the path of 
virtue, to convert the unbelieving ? 

1 ' The thoughts come crowding upon me as I write them down 
incoherently ; just as my mind is torn by continued doubts and 
troubles, with no sure point to rest upon, with no hopes for the 
future, and no sincere regret for the past, as long as I do not 
feel the pangs of conscience. I have been in situations in life 
where even this life seemed a burthen to me, and I did not look 
upon it as a crime to terminate it, when it was tiresome to me. 
It is a present given to me from God. Why should I wait till he 
takes it from me again ? If I seek rest, and I know there is no 
for me but in the grave, why shall I toil on, on this earth — - 
perhaps a burthen to myself and to others, when I can give God 
his present, my life, back again ? Our great philosopher, Kant, 
' ( )nly a knave thinks a life covered with shame, better than 
not to exist at all.' 

" I am unhappy because I cannot believe, because I cannot 
faith, until my mind is released from its doubts, until 
1 uvinced that I am wrong in my belief, in my assertions. 

I bless the hOUr, when the moment comes to me that I 

shall understand all unknown truths which are now darkening 
my mind. As Jesus introduces us to God, so, reverend sir, 



THE HEART TROUBLED. 381 

introduce me to Jesus, that I may not be eternally damned, but 
my soul may be saved, that I may pray with a sore repenting 
heart, k God be merciful to me the sinner. ' If you could spare 
me one hour, you would be able to relieve my mind, and make 
me happy again, through faith. 

1 ' I envied my mother and sisters when I saw them going to 
church every Sunday, and conversing with such pious feelings 
afterwards over the sermon. When I left them, a few months 
ago, I could not comply with the earnest wishes of my aged 
mother, whom I most likely never shall see again, to go with 
them to Communion. How could I, who believe in nothing 
but my own conscience, go to the table of our Lord with 
thoughts like mine in my bosom ? Would it not have been 
blasphemy in the sight of God ? I told my mother my reasons 
for not going to church or Communion. She could only weep 
for me, but could not persuade me into another belief. Can it 
be possible that I can be made to believe ? that my mind can be 
relieved of those doubts which are continually preying upon it ? 
This is for you to decide, most reverend sir. I am not a sinner 
from principle, but by misguided thoughts and reflections. My 
heart is susceptible of every good feeling. Why should it not 
accept the true faith, if relieved from doubts and uncertainties 
concerning it ? 

" You said, a sinner is never too far gone to repent, but he 
must come with an open heart to God ; if not, he will be eter- 
nally damned. Your sermon wonderfully moved me last night, 
and my heart is troubled, not with any fear of future punishment, 
but with a strong desire, and the most earnest wish to learn and 
know the truth. I do not know how long I shall stay here, but 
I shall attend your meetings whenever I can. I have laid before 
you my inmost thoughts, just as they come crowding in my 
mind. I have concealed nothing. If you believe those irrelig- 
ious principles of mine, which I have nourished some twenty 
years, can be chased away by the true faith, I shall bring you a 
confiding and a trusting heart. And my mother will bless you 



J82 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

from mv far off home, when she shall hear that her son has 
returned to God. 1 shall be to-morrow evening in the lecture- 

,). and be most glad and thankful to you, to hear that you 
devote an hour to me at any time you like to appoint. 
u I have the honor to subscribe myself, most reverend sir, 

kk Humbly and respectfully, "Emil S." 

In accordance with this communication, I met the writ- 
er in the lecture- room of the church, brought him to my 
house, discussed some of his objections, and having made 
an appointment for a future conference, sent him away, 
partially relieved, and somewhat encouraged to believe 
that the difficulties, he had raised were not only not as for- 
midable as he feared, but that most of them existed only 
in his own mind ; were more imaginary than real. 

At the second interview, which was the next day, we 
spent an hour or more, and closed with prayer to God 
for the illuminating grace of the Holy Spirit. Before 
leaving, he expressed his gratitude to me for my patience, 
stating that one doubt only remained, and that pertained 
to the divinity of Christ. I had been reading, a few 
days before, " The Christ of History," by John Young, M. 
A., of London. I felt that it was admirably adapted to 
his case. I therefore said to him, " This little book con- 
tains just what you need. Take it, read it carefully and 
prayerfully, and let me know the result." He returned a 
days afterwards very much relieved. His anxiety had 
disappeared, and in its place bad come a cheerful look of 
satisfaction. He had the appearance of a man who had 
n relieved of a load of care ; and as he handed me the 
book, he said, " My every doubt is now removed. " I re- 
sponded, " I am indeed very glad. Now let us thank God 
for his goodness." We bowed together and offered thanks 



" BEHOLD, HE PRAYETH." 383 

for the removal of his doubts and errors. At the close of 
the prayer, I was about to rise, but to my surprise, he, in- 
stead of moving, poured out his heart in thanksgiving to 
God, reciting also, in a clear voice, the Lord's prayer ; 
and that too with an unction that might unhesitatingly 
be considered as having its source in the heart. 

I saw him frequently after this previous to his going 
again to sea, and was gratified to perceive his growth in 
grace and in knowledge. Being so much interested in 
what he had written in his letter to me, I requested him to 
give me some account of his previous life. This he 
cheerfully did, and I give an abstract of it below. It 
certainly will serve to magnify the grace of God, and 
prove that he is not confined in the dispensations of his 
mercy to any class or previous condition of morality in 
the choice by which he brings poor sinners to himself. 

Born in Rendsburg, Schleswig-Holstein, the son of de- 
vout parents, who gave him an education such as fitted him 
for the first society; his youth sadly corrupted and stained 
by flagrant immoralities ; running away to go to sea ; 
breaking the heart of his parents ; his life at sea character- 
ized by more than the ordinary perils, vicissitudes and 
hair-breath escapes, and of the most abject abandonment. 
Now an aimless wanderer, the victim of unrestrained lusts 
and passions, among the barracoons of the coast of 
Guinea ; and now walking the quarter-deck. Now in 
command of a man-of-war, and now a drunken sailor be- 
fore the mast ; now besotted and degraded in his own 
eyes, and now converted at the age of thirty-six, and ris- 
ing to the position of chief-officer ; again, in the navy and 
in the army of the United States, holding up the banner 
of Christ for seven years, and finally returning home to 



384 FIFTY VEARS AMONG sailors. 

his mother, whose heart was gladdened in that she could 
glorify God and say, "This my son was dead and is alive 
again ; he was lost and is found." 

This is a brief history of forty-three years of his 
eventful career. The close of his life, in 1868, is 
told by his sister below. After the attack on Port 
Hudson, in which he bore an honorable part, he was 
invalided and sent to the Naval Hospital at Brooklyn. 
On his recovery he left the hospital at the time when 
large bounties were being paid for entering the army ; 
and in March, 1864, he enlisted, as I learned, in a New 
York cavalry regiment, went down into Virginia, and 
somewhere in that great grave-yard, the valley of the 
Shenandoah, I lost him. No letter ever came after that 
from my heretofore faithful and voluminous correspon- 
dent and spiritual child. From this silence I inferred his 
death ; but in the early part of 188c, I found means of 
corresponding with a sister of his, living in his native 
town, and from her I received the following, dated April 
2nd, 1880: 

" Honored Sir — Our Emil returned over twelve years ago, in 
January, 1868, a broken-down man. He found here, with his 
mother and sisters, a home. Every care and attention was be- 
stowed upon him. After lingering two years he died of soften- 
ing of the brain. He is buried in our Peace Yard, beside the 
dear ones gone before. His mother, then in her eightieth year, 
saw her heart's dearest wish gratified, that he should not die in a 
foreign land, as a stranger, unknown and unregretted. 

"After his return from the war," she says, "he went to sea 

again, was paralyzed, and subsequently laid up in a hospital." 

. "The reason he did not apply to you in his sickness, 

I find in one of his letters, in which he says — 'Friends I have 

none here, since Pastor Jones does not reside in New York now/ 



A BRIEF ABSTRACT. 385 

Otherwise he would never have failed to seek succor and help 
from you, sir, his most highly appreciated friend, in whom he 
would have found that Christian love and sympathy which you, 
dear sir, ever showed him so fully, and would not have refused 
him. My husband, my sister and I myself thank you for all the 
loving-kindness and charity of heart that you, sir, so unremitting- 
ly showed our poor brother. We implore God's richest, choicest 
blessing for your reward. What fulness of love must have room 
in your heart, that after so many years have gone by, you should 
search for and try to follow those to whom you showed so much 
of loving humanity, and taught and preached to them such godly 
charity. It is to me to-day ever a source of bitter grief to know 
that such love was awaiting, even searching for him, and that he 
was not permitted to find you. Perhaps many things might have 
turned out differently. Who can solve us this enigma ? why it 
should have been thus. With sincere wishes for your welfare, I 
remain, most reverend, sir, 

" Your deeply grateful, Clara W." 



17 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

U. S. STEAMER SAVANNAH — LIGHT SPREADING. 

Altar of God set up — Character of the leader — Course mapped out — Prayer 
on the berth-deck — Work progressing — Living witnesses — Varied ex- 
periences—Offended dignity— -A problem — Paucity of chaplains — Widen- 
ing the circle of influence— Scorn and derision — Christ our Righteous- 
ness —A vender of segars — Not ashamed— Disciples scattered —No fear 
of the Union — Missionary spirit — Bristol Bethel service — The mortar 
flotilla — Letter of introduction — Under conviction of sin — The flaming 
torch — The ocean the arena — Word of God the torch — Ocean perils - 
Man's inhumanity to man. 



IN my diary of July 22nd, 1858, I have mentioned the 
drafting of three hundred men from the receiving ship 
for the crew of the Savannah. Among them were several 
professors of religion, some members of the Mariners' 
churches in this city, and some, who, having been con- 
verted on board " the North/' had not yet formed any 
church connection. All were zealous for the maintenance 
and advancement of the cause and kingdom of Christ 
among their shipmates, and expressed their determina- 
tion, with Divine assistance, to labor to that end. They 
pledged themselves to set up the altar of God, and to 
maintain public worship, as soon as transferred to their 
own ship, if suitable provision could be made. I pro- 
cured for them a large supply of religious reading matter, 
and commending them to God, and to the word of his 
386 



CHARACTER OF THE LEADER. 387 

grace, urged them to faithfulness, in view of both the 
cross and the crown. Before sailing, I instructed them 
with regard to the practice of self-denial and watchfulness 
against the assaults of Satan, to which I knew they would 
be exposed in their efforts to maintain a godly conversa- 
tion in the presence of their shipmates. I also promised 
to keep up a regular correspondence with, and to assist 
them to the best of my ability. They sailed in August 
for the coast of Central America. 

Among the brethren was a young convert, who subse- 
quently united with my church. He was chosen one of 
the leaders of the meeting afterward established, and be- 
came my faithful and regular correspondent From him 
I learned the details of their daily experience in spiritual 
things. He was a man well adapted to his position and 
duties ; of great energy, fervent piety, and prolific of re- 
sources. He wrote and spoke easily, and well. 

In education he was in advance of the general run of 
his shipmates ; and so far from being influenced by his 
fears, opposition only served to develope more fully his 
unwavering devotion to his Saviour. His good sense, his 
innate modesty, the kindness of his manner and his per- 
severing consistency, made him a favorite with his com- 
panions, and gave him a large influence among officers 
and men. His letters, which came to me monthly, were 
discriminating rather than commonplace, and detailed 
the varying incidents of their everyday life, their fluctuat- 
ing fortunes, their growth and their decay. Their weak- 
nesses, and their wants, their tribulations and their tri- 
umphs ; the opposition they encountered, the difficulties 
they overcame, their intense longings for the souls of 
their shipmates, and their sore disappointment at their 



388 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

want of success, were all faithfully and confidentially 
onicled. So that in my pastoral letters, sent to them 
monthly, 1 was enabled to present such advice and coun- 
sel as was calculated to benefit them without compromis- 
ing him. 

After leaving New York, the brethren came together 
on the forward part of the berth-deck, near the brig — 
the place of confinement for prisoners — and held sweet 
communion with God, and with each other. Here they 
mapped out their course for the future. In a lettei 
to me from Grey town, dated September 18 th, 1858, he 
says : " We could not read God's holy word there, for the 
want of light ; neither could we sing, as we had not yet 
obtained permission to hold public service." They sub- 
sequently addressed a respectful note to the captain, who, 
in his reply, expressed his surprise that his sailors should 
desire to hold a prayer-meeting, but immediately gave his 
consent, and appointed a place for the meeting : 

" We are now, therefore," he adds, " enabled to pass the word, 
every evening, ' All who wish to attend prayer-meeting, come 
below, on the berth-deck, forward/ Thank the Lord ! some of 
the crew accept the invitation. Our number has not very largely 
increased. Yet, those who do come, are, in my opinion, alive 
to the interests of souls, and are more interested in God's work 
than they were some time ago. They have been led to renew 
their covenant, and are more determined to win Christ, and be 
found in him. Our great aim is to make our shipmates sensible 
of their own personal unworthiness ; of their death in sin, and of 
their life in Christ Jesus alone. We would have them see the ne- 
ity of continued, persevering prayer, and the faithful study of 
the divine word. Since we have taken this position, the light 
seems to shine more brightly, and to burn more clearly in our 
own souls. For a season, we could not induce the brethren to 



LIVING WITNESSES. 389 

speak freely in our meetings ; but, now, they are willing to testi- 
fy to what God has done for them in giving them a good hope 
of eternal life. And their testimony encourages others. On the 
whole, I believe the good work is progressing, and that many of 
our shipmates will be gathered into the flock of the Good Shep- 
herd. 

" The brethren have appointed four of us to lead the meetings 
in rotation. But the duty really devolves on Brother R — , and 
myself. Pray for us, that the Holy Spirit may dwell in our 
hearts, as in his own holy temple. I wish you could hear how 
fervently our brethren pray that we may all be taught of God, 
and that we may be strengthened and refreshed from on high. 
Brother R — visited the U. S. steamer Saratoga on Sabbath last, 
and found some followers of Christ among her crew. They do 
not hold any public sendee, but have promised, if possible, to 
obtain permission to do so. We are hoping to procure liberty to 
go on board of her, and give them a start. May God give them 
grace to come out boldly and acknowledge Christ before the 
world ! 

' ' The Chagres fever has broken out among us, but none of 
the brethren have yet taken it. Let us hear from you often. 
Any counsel or advice you may proffer, will be thankfully ap- 
preciated. " 

Letters of this nature continued to come monthly from 
this dear brother, from the date of the above until May, 
.1861, to all of which I faithfully responded. 

A bare abstract of these epistles, containing the religious 
history of the Savannah's cruise, is all that can be offered 
in this connection. It is encouraging, however, to be 
able to say that for more than two full years, in 
storm and in calm, at sea and in port, the lamp of 
Divine truth was kept burning on her berth-deck ; that 
the faithful few, undismayed through all the trials of 
their way, did stand up as living witnesses for Christ in 



yjO FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

the midst of gainsayers and enemies of the Gospel, 
their daily lives being a continued protest against the 
evil practices around them. 

Now, for a season, they were cast down and dis- 
couraged by the falling off of one or more of their num- 
ber, who, becoming faint and weary in the maintenance 
of the unequal strife, had " squared away " before the 
storm of raillery and opposition, and gone back to the 
beggarly elements of the world. 

Anon, they were cheered by the return of a backslider, 
or by the accession of some new convert from the ranks 
of the ungodly. At one time, mourning over their want 
of success in winning souls, attributing their failure to 
their own short comings, and at another rejoicing over 
the presence at their evening gatherings of some brother 
or brethren from the Relief, Saratoga, Seminole, Susque- 
hanna, Supply, St Louis, or Brooklyn ; bringing them 
good tidings of the progress of the cause on board of 
their respective ships. Or they were stirred up to fresh 
zeal by a privileged visit made by some of their own num- 
ber, to the other vessels of the squadron, on board of 
which their brethren in Christ were warring a good war- 
fare. In these mutual visitations, opportunities were 
afforded for the interchange of salutation and experiences, 
and for the stirring up of each others* pure minds by 
way of remembrance, as they took part unitedly in their 
simple worship. They had many difficulties to contend 
with, it is true ; but even these were not without their 
compensations. For if persecuted and brought to the 
mast as criminals, as the two leaders were in one case, 
because they dared to point a dying shipmate in the sick 
Bay to Christ, without first asking permission of the sur- 



OFFENDED DIGNITY. 39 1 

geon, whose dignity was offended thereby, they were on 
other occasions assisted by their officers in the prosecu- 
tion of their work. 

Notably was this the case, in the person of Lieut. K — , 
who conducted the Sabbath services, organized a Sabbath- 
school, and aided them in maintaining a weekly Bible 
class, for the mutual study of the Scriptures. Of these 
means of grace they were not slow to avail themselves. 
Nor did they fail to profit by them. It may not be un- 
interesting to Christians ashore, to learn how the piety 
of those dear brethren was fed, and flourished in the ab- 
sence of so many privileges as are enjoyed on the land. 
How long would the moral status of any community 
ashore be kept up, if the churches were closed, and the 
ordinances of religion under interdict, or practically abol- 
ished ? Given the problem, with the minimum of means, 
to maintain the maximum of Christian faithfulness and 
devotion, and many would fail entirely of a satisfactory 
solution. Let it be understood here, that this is, practi- 
cally, the condition of things on board a vessel at sea, es- 
pecially on board of a man-of-war, where hundreds of 
men are often shut up together between the narrow limits 
of the bulwarks, for three years at a time, with an entire 
absence of all moral influence and restraint. It is unmis- 
takably true that in the United States' Navy the men were 
virtually abandoned to their own immoral courses. It 
may be objected by some strict constructionist, " the 
Government has no authority to teach religion." Then, 
I ask what means the appointment of chaplains at all ? 
Why not abolish both the name and the rank ? 

But the Government does propose to teach good mor- 
als, at least This is presumably the reason for their em- 



392 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

plovmcnt. But how many, or rather how few chaplains 
were there in the U. S. Navy at that time ? A glance at 
the Navy Register will show that their number was sadly 
out of proportion to the wants of the service. In the 
midst of the Rebellion, when we had hundreds of ships 
in commission, and forty thousand men employed to man 
them, there were, according to the U. S. Navy Register, 
of 1862, only three chaplains afloat in sea-going ships. 
Nine of the largest vessels in the Gulf Squadron were 
unprovided. It surely cannot be wondered at that in- 
iquity abounded. It is difficult to conceive how it could 
be otherwise. Yet here and there religion had her faith- 
ful representatives among both officers and men, the 
voluntary associations and the Mariners* churches provi- 
dentially making up the deficiency. 

The use made of their advantages by the Christian men 
of the Gulf Squadron was by no means confined to the 
vessels with which they were actually connected. Their 
desire " to do something for the dear Saviour ashore,'' 
impelled them to seek opportunities for usefulness, out- 
side their own immediate circle. My correspondent 
wrote me under date of April 7th, i860: 

"To-day I sent fifty copies of the Dairyman's Daughter, six 
Spanish and English Testaments, and a number of tracts, in 
Spanish) to a lady in Vera Cruz, who has distributed tracts for us, 
among the Mexicans before. I accompanied them with a note, 
asking her to make the best use of them she could, for the 
Saviour's sake. These messengers of life or of death are on the 
wing. Ix-t us pray that they may prove a blessing to those poor 
SOlll-enslaved and priest-ridden people." 

Five months later, another supply — purchased in part 

with their own money — was sent to the same lady, who, 



SCORN AND DERISION. 393 

in acknowledging the receipt of them, sent her heartfelt 
thanks for the opportunity they afforded her of doing 
good. Surely that was a living piety, and a true mis- 
sionary spirit which burned with such intensity for the 
souls of a people whose faces they never had seen ! 

It must not be forgotten that this spirit was maintained 
under disadvantages — of which the absence of sanctuary 
privileges were far from being the greatest. They were 
met, in addition to the difficulties arising out of ship's 
duty — with the scorn and derision of the ungodly and 
the profane, the jeers and jibes of the would-be infidels, 
and the sluggishness of their own hearts, which last they 
sometimes, mournfully, acknowledge to be no small ob- 
stacle to their success. They complain also of the 
"apathy" of their "poor dead" — spiritually dead ship- 
mates — and pray, oh ! that God would quicken them, 
and bring bone to bone and sinew to sinew, and clothe 
them with flesh ! They lament, too, the presence of 
" enemies within and without." But the greatest enemy to 
the extension of the kingdom of Christ among themselves, 
were the devotees of Rome. When they found a poor 
sinner becoming serious, they assailed him with ridicule 
and tried to bring upon him the contempt of his ship- 
mates. M Failing in this," says the writer, " they ply him 
with difficult questions which he cannot answer, and thus 
strive to drive him from the very threshold of mercy." 

Illustrating this point in a subsequent letter, they say : 

"We feel the necessity of living very close to the riven side of 
our Redeemer, that we may feel that God is our strength and 
Christ our righteousness, that we may not give way to fear and 
despondency. I must relate an incident here. A smart intelli- 
gent lad came on board the other day, to sell segars. I was 

i 7 * 



394 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

pleased with his appearance, and felt sorry to sec such an one in 
ignorance of the great salvation. I therefore offered him a Span- 
restament and some tracts, which he thankfully received, and 
promised to read. As he took them from my hand, my heart 
up to God in prayer, to make them useful to his soul 
Some Romanists, standing by, began to laugh at him, hoping 
thereby to induce him to refuse them. Finding that they could 
not succeed, one of them sneeringly said, ' Well, that is what I 
call stuffing religion down a man's throat/ Poor souls ! They 
will neither come to the light themselves, nor will they permit 
others to come if they can prevent it. In the mean time the 
vender of segars is in possession of the Word of Life. Who knows 
but God may yet make him a vender of the words of eternal life, 
and use the talent he possesses for the salvation of souls, and for 
His own glory. These people are anxious for good books, and 
are delighted to read them." 

In a letter from Vera Cruz, dated May 23rd, i860, 
Brother C writes : 

4 ' We had a visit from Brother Charles P , of the store- 
ship Supply. He has entered into covenant with, and is not 
ashamed to confess Christ. But he stands alone. His shipmates 
are careless and praycrless. And he, like Lot in Sodom, finds 
his soul vexed daily with the filthy conversation of the wicked. 
I J has therefore much to contend with. I gave him some of my 
volumes, and I pray God that his every trial maybe to him as the 
furnace to the gold." 

The last letter received from the Savannah before 
she was ordered home, is dated Vera Cruz, September 
1 ith, i860, and closes thus : 

"The Susquehanna came in on the 4th. I hear that her 

twain is a servant of Christ, and held prayer-meetings on 

Sabbatb evening, and that her executive officer, Lieut. B — — , is 

not ashamed t Christ before men. Let us pray that the 



DISCIFLES SCATTERED. 395 

Lord will make them patient and efficient workers in his vine- 
yard. I have issued eighty volumes from my library during the 
past six weeks. I see but little at present to rejoice over in the 
way of fruit. But the seed is sown and I do not despair. My 
prayer is that God will not suffer any of us to become weary in 
well-doing, but will encourage us to < sow in the morn our seed, 
and in the evening hold not the hand/ Glory to God ! 

" Our meeting continues nightly without intermission. The 
heart only knows how precious is our communion with our 
reconciled God and Father. Pray for us. We do not cease to 
pray for you." 

When the ship was put out of commission, the beloved 
disciples were scattered. Some of them enlisted in the 
army, and some re-entered the navy. Their after record 
shows that with all their distributions and exposures, they 
remained loyal, alike to Christ their Redeemer, and to 
the flag of the Union, until they came home covered with 
glory and honor at the close of the war. 

In May, 1861, my correspondent wrote to me from 
Washington, announcing the defection of an officer, who 
had resigned to join the South, and saying : 

" I am determined, come what may, never to see New York, 
except it be on duty, until Uncle Sam's difficulties are all arranged. 
The good old fellow has me at any price, or without price if he 
needs me. No fear of the Union while the old family Bible is 
read, and its precepts are practiced. God has blessed and pros- 
pered this country. His work shall not come to nought. The 
enemies of freedom shall not succeed in their fell designs. " 

It was a blessed thing for the nation that the Revival 
preceded the Rebellion, and kindled at the same time 
on the altar of men's hearts the fires of loyalty to country 
and fidelity to God. 



396 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

In addition to the religious influence of seamen among 
their own shipmates at sea, we had many other examples 
he true missionary spirit displayed by the members 
and converts of our church. One of our seamen, during 
this year, was actively engaged in laboring among the 
ships in New Orleans. Another spent several weeks in 
the same employment with him. They commenced and 
kept up a prayer-meeting for seamen under the auspices 
of the Young Men's Christian Association, through which 
much good was effected. Another, a chief-officer, in the 
fall, visited Bristol, England, and in company with four 
or five other pious sailors, who were anxious to be about 
their Father's business, attended the Seamen's Bethel 
nightly. 

But as there seemed to them to be some lack of a true 
spiritual vitality, they began to exhort the good people 
of Bristol, and to provoke them to love and to good 
works. As a result, the Bethel services were given up to 
them exclusively, on certain evenings. On those occa- 
sions our Brother B , the chief-officer, conducted the 

exercises, all his brethren taking active part. The Lord 
was pleased to own their labors, and crown them with 
success. Believers were edified and stimulated to effort, 
and many sinners were awakened. 

The fame of the American sailors' meeting went 
abroad into the town and country round. Our brethren 
were called upon to visit other churches, from place to 
place. Their labors were sanctified, and a blessed revi- 
val was the result, the full effect of which will be known 
only in eternity, when the sheaves are gathered in. The 
chief-officer, when the rebellion broke out, volunteered 
his services to the United States' Navy, was accepted, ap- 



THE MORTAR FLOTILLA. 397 

pointed to a command in the mortar flotilla, and ordered 
South. He passed through the exciting scenes of the 
Mississippi naval engagements under Farragut, from the 
passage of Forts Philip and Jackson, to the taking of New 
Orleans and the capture of Vicksburg, on to the close of 
the war. He was prominent in the expeditions of the 
Yazoo, Arkansas, and Red River, in all of which he held 
important commands, and received the commendations 
of his superior officers. During all that period, he was 
enabled, while sustaining bravely and faithfully the flag 
of our common country, to bear aloft, also, the banner of 
the Cross. He is at this writing, a useful and influential 
member of a church in the city in which he resides, and, 
with his entire family, is maintaining a walk and conversa- 
tion which corresponds with his public confession of 
Christ in the Mariners* church a quarter of a century 
ago. 

Incidents like the above remind me of what I have 
somewhere read, that among the Isthmian Games of 
Greece, there was one sacred to Neptune in the cele- 
bration of which the ministrants, who were placed at 
given intervals in the arena, passed from one to another a 
flaming torch. One of them, holding it in his right hand, at 
a given signal raised it high in the air, and after whirling 
it two or three times above his head, so as to create a 
circle of light about his own person, flung it out in the 
direction of his nearest neighbor, who, catching it, and 
swinging it over his head in like manner, hurled it to the 
next, and he again to the next, until it made the entire 
circuit, flooding the whole arena with light, and came 
back to the hands of him who had given it its initial im- 
petus. 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

It seems to me that \vc have in the influence of our 
Christian sailors of to-day, our true sons of Neptune, a 
perfect analogy to, if not the very antitype of this an- 
cient custom. 

These men, having the ocean surrounding the entire 
globe for their arena, imitate the features of this game 
by disseminating the Word of Life among the dark places 
of the earth, which are full of the habitations of cruelty. 
Let one of them, for example, be invited to the house of 
God, and become a possessor of the Light of Life, or in 
an>' way, have the gospel brought home to his own soul, 
and he at once becomes an instrument in the hands of 
his Lord and Saviour of scattering that light. Having 
lighted the torch of devotion at the altar of God, he 
luxuriates in its brightness. But he cannot enjoy it 
alone! Having therefore illumined the circle of which he 
is himself the centre, he goes forth on his light-bearing 
voyage, flings his glowing torch out into the surrounding 
darkness to some brother sailor, who, catching it from 
his hands, repeats the illuminating process, by throwing 
the flame of his Christian life still farther, into the spirit- 
ual darkness which lies beyond him. 

Thus these cosmopolites, passing the word of God 
from one to the other, may bear the light of Gospel 
truth, and of Christian example around the coast line of 
the globe, and (ill the whole world with the brightness 
of the Redeemer's glory. Will they not thus fulfil the 
command of the Lord," Let your light so shine, that others, 
seeing your good works, may glorify your Father who 
is in heaven " ? 

I insert here a letter written to me from Liverpool, 
dated February 9th, 1858, by a young Hebrew sailor, 



man's inhumanity to man. 399 

who was converted under my ministry in 1857. While 
other communications from these poor neglected ones 
illustrate the mercy of God, this one throws some light 
on the dark side of humanity at sea, and shows that the 
sailors' fearful perils are multiplied and enhanced by the 
wickedness of men, or rather of beings who claim to be 
men, and who in all probability would consider them- 
selves insulted if designated as brutes. It is very clear 
from the following statement that the tender mercies of 
the wicked are cruel. But he shall speak for himself: 

"Jlfr. Jones — My Dear Sir — I must acquaint you with my happy 
state of mind in this ship. On our passage here, I have followed 
your advice, and have prayed night and day to the God of all 
goodness to enable me to walk in the way of righteousness, and 
to cleanse this sinful heart of mine, and make me a new creat- 
ure. The more I prayed, the more I wanted to pray. But at 
times I was beset with evil and wicked thoughts. I soon lost 
them, however, in prayer to my God. I hope, my dear sir, that 
you will always remember me in your prayers, for the prayers of 
the righteous avail much. 

" I must tell you that this is a very wicked ship. While on 
the Banks, we lost a man overboard, and neither the captain nor 
the mate made the least effort to save him. The weather was very 
cold, and eight of the men besides myself were frost-bitten. 
Thank God, I am well again ! We arrived here after a passage 
of only seventeen days. 

" I must say that you have been the means of saving my soul 
from hell. For I feel that I am a new man altogether since I 
first heard you preach on the words, ' Except a man be born 
again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. ' That word is ring- 
ing in my ears night and day. I have been to see my brothers 
and sisters ; but they will have nothing to do with me, because I 
have become a Christian. On the passage we had to pump night 
and day to keep the ship from going down under our feet. I 



400 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

went away eveiy chance I could get, to ask God to preserve us 
and prepare us to die. 

"The poor man we lost overboard was a watchmate of mine, 
about f< >riy years oi age. I was at the wheel when he fell from the 
lee main topsail yard-arm. I saw him fall, and immediately 
hove the helm hard down. The captain came on deck and 
cursed and swore at me. He commanded me to put the helm 
up, and then turned me away from the wheel and made more 
sail on the ship. The poor sailor was left to his fate, without the 
slightest effort to save him. Poor fellow ! How often I have 
thought of what you said, l Prepare to meet thy God f Oh, 
may 1 be ever prepared, is the prayer of your humble servant in 
Christ Jesus. I hope you and all the congregation will pray for 
me/' 



CHAPTER XIX. 

PERMANENT IMPRESSIONS — DEATH OF MORRIS. 

Do they stick ? — Our response — The world's estimate — Sailors comprehend 
their position — AVell-marked characteristics — Sense of sin — Mercy of God 
— Charity for man -Endurance of persecution — No back-door at sea — 
No fictitious support — The triturating process — Chaff and wheat — Uncle 
Sam's web-feet Graduates of the forecastle — In the school of Christ — 
The out-come — U. S. steamer St. Louis —Perseverance of the saints — 
Formidable difficulties — No regard to the Sabbath — Slaves of the tub — 
Scoffers remained to pray — Blessed revival — Man's extremity, God's op- 
portunity—" Sweet hour of prayer " — Gratitude for the conversion of a 
sailor -The call of the spirit — Backsliders reclaimed —Peculiarities — 
Prayer-meeting in the mizzen-top — The lion, a lamb— Tears of penitence 
— Deep contrition Public sentiment changed — Christmas a blessed day 
— Whole ship's company impressed— Crew on " tip-toe '' — Satan raging 
moi Weaker links giving way— Brethren scattered — Nuclei of 

other gatherings I teath of Morris Tribute to his faithfulness. 

THERE has been, and doubtless will continue to be 
manifested an anxiety on the part of those who are look- 



DO THEY STICK? 4OI 

ing to the purity of the Church, to inquire into the pro- 
minent features of the religious experience of these men. I 
have shown from reliable and unimpeachable testimony 
their remarkable susceptibility to religious impressions, 
and the readiness with which they yield to the truth, as 
it is in Christ, when presented to them in its simplicity, 
and in the spirit of Christian love. There is, however, 
another question arising, of equal, if not of still greater 
importance, viz., that which regards the permanency of 
these impressions. 

My coadjutors in this work and myself were often in- 
terrogated by those who were interested in the progress 
of our work, after this manner. What is your opinion of 
these Christian seamen ? Do you think they fully under- 
stand the importance of their position ? Is their religion 
of that positive character which will give them influence 
among their shipmates at sea ? Can you keep the run 
of them ? What evidence have you that they are faith- 
ful to their profession after they are out of your sight ? 
Are they easily seduced from their steadfastness ? How 
do they hold out. Do they stick ? 

If these questions were intended to apply to every in- 
dividual case of hopeful conversion among seamen, and 
an affirmative answer be required, in order to secure sym- 
pathy with, and co-operation in the work of propagating 
the Gospel among them, then we fear that some will be dis- 
appointed, and perhaps discouraged by the negative form 
of the response. Sailors are but men, and like other men, 
may sometimes disappoint the hopes and anticipations of 
the over-sanguine. But if it be meant only to inquire 
whether we are to expect the same proportion of suc- 
cess among them as among landsmen, whether the 



402 Firry years among sailors. 

nary labor arc as permanent among these 
ocean wanderers as among the more sedate dwellers upon 
the land — then the answer may be given confidently 
in the affirmative. Nay, more. 

When all these circumstances are taken into considera- 
tion, their privations, perils and temptations, their absence 
from the means of grace, and from the amenities of so- 
cial and domestic life, and their exposure to unhallowed 
and corrupting influences abroad, when these are consider- 
ed, the amount of good accomplished, and the extent 
and permanency of that good will be found to be as 
large, if not larger in proportion to the outlay of time and 
money and self-denying efforts, than that of ordinary mis- 
sionary work on the land. To these queries, I have at 
times returned answer, by taking from my box of " Let- 
lers Received," some recent epistle from one of my corre- 
spondents, and read it to our sometimes semi-sceptical 
friend ; and in no instance, has it failed to give satisfaction. 

But as these facts are now to have a wider range, and 
as their anxiety is perfectly natural, and should be grati- 
fied, it will be necessary to enter more fully into detail, 
than could be done by the reading of any one particular 
epistle. I will endeavor, therefore, to meet the demand. 
It must be kept in mind, however, that sailors have long 
been known to the outside world, only for their rollicking 
carelessness, their intemperance, and their reckless disre- 
1 of the proprieties of civilized life. They were so- 
cially ostracised, relegated to the slums of the river-front 
and the sea-shore, associated with rum and harlotry, 
(1 noon as God-forsaken ; how could they be expec- 
to be anything else ? What wonder that they are 
wicked Who would not be, under similar circum- 



THE WORLD'S ESTIMATE. 403 

stances ? The world is willing to admit that they are 
brave, and generous, and trustworthy, because it places 
its defence, its wealth, and household treasures in their 
hands. But still it excludes them from its sympathies. 

It were well if the Church itself were not open to the 
same charge of exclusion and neglect. For although 
God's gracious promise concerning " the abundance of 
the sea," has been recorded for the encouragement of 
his people for the last twenty-five centuries, the Church 
is not even yet thoroughly awake to the spiritual interests 
of these noble men, whom she will one day recognize as 
her faithful coadjutors, and put forth her best efforts to 
gather into her fold. But it is the Church with a slight 
touch of sceptieism in her tone — that asks these ques- 
tions. The reply is, that, as a class, when once awaken- 
ed from the long sleep of moral death, they do seem 
immediately to comprehend their responsibility to God, 
to his Church, and to their fellow-men. They appear 
fully conscious of the importance of their position as 
applicants to the Church for admission to her ordi- 
nances. 

The devout Christian men who composed the council, 
and who conducted, with myself the examination of those 
who were admitted to church fellowship, were impressed 
with the prominence of certain well-marked characteristics 
in their experience, as indicative of the presence of the 
convincing and converting energies of the Holy Spirit. 
The same features were manifested in them as have been 
witnessed in similar revival scenes on shore. 

There was, for example, a deep sense of the guilt of 
sin, and an intense conviction of its exceeding sinfulness 
in their own lives. This was accompanied by a profound 



404 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

sorrow for sin, and a disposition and desire to turn from it 
with grief and hatred as the abominable thing that God 

s. Nor was there wanting a keen manly sense of the 
justice of God in the condemnation of the sinner, which 

wed, logically, from the sense of their own ill-desert. 
The}' nourished none of those silly ideas maintained by a 
44 philosophy falsely so called " of a goodness which con- 
dones rebellion against the divine authority. They had 
no conceptions of a whimpering, compassionate philan- 
thropy, which is confined to the few at the expense of the 
man}' ; which fears giving pain to the traitor, while he is 
murderously and treacherously laboring to undermine the 
very foundations of the government of God, yet heeds 
not the interests and safety of his subjects at large. These 
men have been too long and too well accustomed to a rigid 
discipline, to suppose that mutiny against supreme au- 
thority can escape its legitimate penalty, except where 
that authority lacks the power to assert and sustain itself. 
The}- know nothing, as a class, of those theories which be- 
little the significance of the majesty of power in the 
hands of the great Ruler of the Universe. Their corre- 
spondence over and over again expresses their wonder 
at the marvellous long-suffering of God, who did not 
take them in their own toils and crush them for their 
wild and wicked opposition to his word and will. There 
was also present a true sense of the ingratitude of their 
past lives toward God and Christ, and an avowed pur- 
devote all their powers henceforth, to the service 
of Him who had given his life for them. 

Joined with all these, two other features were espe- 
cially marked, viz , 1st, A sublime consciousness of the 
mercy of God in Christ and of the utter helplessness of 



NO BACK-DOOR AT SEA. 405 

all human effort to procure deliverance for the soul. 2nd, 
A sincere and fraternal love for the souls of their fellow- 
men, as shown in the missionary spirit they developed, 
and in the efforts put forth for the salvation of their ship- 
mates, even though the more they labored to that end, 
the less they were beloved. The long-continued and 
rasping nature of the petty attacks from the worldly, the 
savage bigotry they were subjected to in many instances 
from Roman Catholics, as well as the blasphemies and 
scurrilous assaults of avowed infidels and unbelievers which 
they unflinchingly endured, would have utterly wrecked 
many a well-disposed soul ashore, even with religious 
society, the Church, and Sabbath-school to support them. 
For, be it remembered, there is no back-door of escape 
at sea. The man who maintains the cause of his Master, 
who holds up the banner of the Cross on the berth-deck 
or in the forecastle, must be a Christian of no inferior 
moid. It requires courage, true moral courage, to hold 
his own for the right, where all the currents of influence 
are in opposition. The Christian sailor at sea, has no ficti- 
tious supports to lean upon, no external props. He leans 
on Omnipotence, or he falls altogether. There are, under 
such circumstances, no concealments possible. His very 
soul is patent to his shipmates, and a single false step, such 
as might be hidden, covered up, ashore, is often fatal to 
him, because it is at once published abroad. Keen arrows 
of wit, sarcasm and ridicule are hurled at him. He is the 
target for the ribald jests and the contemptuous jeers of 
the malicious, the profane and the would-be satirist ; so 
that the wonder is, not that some do fall, but that any 
do stand. It is a mark of abounding grace therefore 
that men in such conditions are enabled to maintain the 



406 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

honor of the Master in so apparently unequal a strife, to 
withstand in the evil day, and having done all, still to stand. 

These characteristics will be seen in marked prominence 
as we follow the men to their separate ships and ves- 
sels of war, tracing their influence for good, and weighing 
the difficulties with which they were called to contend. 

In the great and precious harvest, springing from the 
living seed sown on board the receiving ship, it will not 
be wonderful if some chaff were mingled with the wheat 
in the threshing season of trial. Amid godless shipmates, 
and unholy surroundings, the chaff would necessarily be 
sifted out and blown off. Whenever did wheat grow 
without chaff? Whenever did the sons of God come 
together, that Satan was not in the midst ? There was 
chaff mingled with the wheat here, as the workers, who 
have watched the triturating process through which many 
of these converted souls passed, do fully know. But the 
proportion of chaff to the wheat garnered, was, in this 
case, certainly very small. Twenty-five years have 
passed away since that blessed season of refreshing, and 
although I have watched these men, and traced them in 
their progress from voyage to voyage, and from ship to 
ship, I have learned of very few who ever deserted their 
colors, or who fell from their allegiance to the Great Cap- 
tain of their Salvation. As a rule, the sailor, brought 
out of the horrible pit and miry clay, his feet once es- 
tablished on the rock of salvation, is as true to his Sa- 
viour, a, to his country's flag in time of national peril. 
ident Lincoln, in one of his public papers, took the 
pain- to say, that while traitors had been found in almost 
all ranks of society, yet " Uncle Sam's webfeet had re- 
mained true to the dear old flag." 



GRADUATES OF THE FORECASTLE. 407 

It is true of the converts of the North Carolina in gen- 
eral, that as far as traceable, they have remained, with a 
very few exceptions, true to their covenant vows. How 
true, the correspondence will enable the reader to judge ; 
the character of which, in some instances, at least, 
is indicative of a mental calibre, and of a spiritual 
insight, which may appear, on account of its superi- 
ority to the conditions, and want of educational facilities 
of these men, to be beyond their capacity ; consequently 
a suspicion may arise in the mind of the reader that 
these letters could not have originated with them, that 
they are the product of an intellectual culture which is 
beyond their reach. It is inconceivable, doubtless, to 
some minds, that these graduates of the forecastle, as 
they are slightingly termed, should be proficients, not in 
the elements merely, but also in some of the abstract 
principles of what may be designated a spiritual psycho- 
logy, if that combination is allowable. These men have 
proved themselves to be very apt learners ; disciples 
indeed, who, sitting at the feet of the Great Teacher, 
have imbibed the truth pure from the divine fountain 
itself. 

I have found in some instances a marvellous precocity 
in their attainments, a comprehensive grasp, a profound 
conception of spiritual truth, a maturity of Christian ex- 
perience, and even more, a theological acumen, which in 
men who have been so far removed from all the means 
of improvement, lead us to ask, whence have these men 
this superior knowlege ? How have they acquired it, 
in the absence of scholastic training ? The answer is not 
far to seek. They have been taught in the school of 
Christ. They have been with Jesus, and have learned of 



40S FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

Him. They have held converse in the ward-room and 
on the berth-deck, in the forecastle, and in the cabin, 
with the Great Teacher himself. He who once sat on the 
well-curb, while instructing* a dissolute Samaritan woman, 
who once again walked on the Sea of Galilee, in the 
gloom of a midnight storm, to give encouragement to his 
imperilled disciples, has not been unwilling to convey 
such instructions to these men of the waters as would fit 
them for the exigencies of human experience, through 
which he intended they should pass. 

It should be further remembered, in estimating the 
value of this correspondence, and the intelligence with 
which it was conducted, that not one in a hundred of 
these men had the remotest idea that one line they were 
writing would ever find its way into print. What they 
wrote was for the eye of their pastor alone. There was, 
therefore, no stimulus to the production of anything 
above the most ordinary and common-place. But, the 
reader is already in possession of illustrations in point, and 
it is only necessary to say that he has the experiences of 
these men in their own words. 

The actual outcome of the work of grace among these 
men of the sea, from 1856 till 1863, W *H never be fully 
known. Of the little that is known, " the half will never 
be told." I may state, however, that in all the vessels 
in which I had correspondents during that period, 
the cause of Christ was represented by devout officers 
and men, who, with more or less zeal, and with varied 
success, while working out their own salvation with fear 
and trembling, labored for the salvation of their ship- 
mates. The number of such faithful disciples in each 

selj ranged from one up to seventy. In some in- 



U. S. STEAMER ST. LOUIS. 409 

stances the good work was carried forward with the ac- 
quiescence and sympathy of the quarter-deck. In others 
the circumstances were far less favorable ; — the seed in 
such cases being sown in suffering and pain, in the face 
of determined opposition on the part of the officers, as 
well as the petty persecutions of the men, " with strong 
crying and tears/' 

In a preceding chapter I have inserted a letter from 
the U. S. steamer St. Louis, written previous to her de- 
parture, and signed by eleven of her crew, who went 
forth, bearing the banner of Christ. These brethren 
succeeded, during the entire cruise of thirty-three 
months, in maintaining a prayer or experience-meeting, 
or a Bible class, every night, with brief intervals, during 
which they were interfered with by ship's duty, or were 
driven from their post by the songs of the drunkards in 
the brig. Their Christian life, as might have been an- 
ticipated, was subject to fluctuations, and to difficulties 
such as, at times, seemed almost insurmountable. Yet, 
by the grace of God, though their numbers were reduced 
in seasons of depression to a minimum of three, the ene- 
my did not succeed in extinguishing the light of pious 
example on the berth-deck. The occasional defection 
of a brother on whom all had relied, brought grief to the 
hearts of the faithful few, who, whatever the grounds of 
their discouragement, did not allow themselves to "give 
up the ship." They clung to Jehovah's promise, to "the 
two or three met together in his name," and illustrated 
by their vigilance and activity the " perseverance of the 
saints." 

Nor was their faithfulness unrewarded. They were 
permitted to see one after another of the straying ones 



410 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

return to their allegiance, and take their part in the work 
with renewed zeal and energy. The meetings were con- 
ducted by the brethren in turn, under the supervision of 
our ever faithful J. A. Morris, assisted occasionally by 
Lieut. ML P. Jones, who, when permitted, held divine ser- 
vice publicly on the Sabbath. He also, for a large part 
of the cruise, taught the Bible class, held invariably on 
Sabbath afternoon. 

The difficulties with which these brethren were en- 
compassed w r ere very many and formidable. A want of 
controlling power aft led to an abuse of the men on the 
part of subordinates. Some of the officers punished men 
according to their own whims and caprices, and without 
any authority from the supreme command. Of one of 
these, a lieutenant, it is said, that he was a scoffer and 
a persecutor, the very impersonation of tyranny and 
cruelty. When these matters were reported, the men 
obtained no redress. Subsequently these abuses became 
known at Washington, and the command was changed 
for the better. 

Another trial to which they were subjected, and from 
which there was no escape, was the ridicule heaped upon 
them by their shipmates. They were dubbed " Psalm- 
singers " and " hypocrites ;" their hymns of praise and 
their prayers travestied. " You * want to go/ do you ?" 
says one, referring to one of their favorite hymns ; " then 
why don't you go ? Jump overboard I" Such slurs 
were frequent. In the fore part of the cruise there was 
BO regard paid to the Sabbath. An old line officer in- 
formed me that he had never known so much profanity 
and Sabbath-breaking in the navy. Men were driven 
into wrong doing by those in authority. " All those 



SCOFFERS REMAINED TO PRAY. 41 I 

occupying high places among us," he says, " are without 
the fear of God before their eyes." " Do not wonder," 
he writes again, " that some of your members are turned 
away. They are driven to it by the fear of man/' At an- 
other time he reports, "many have yielded to the assaults 
of Satan." 

The chief difficulty, before which all others were 
dwarfed, was the grog- tub, which was the standing temp- 
tation, at least twice a day, as they were called to re- 
ceive the whiskey ration supplied by the Government. 
Many fell before this giant evil, which appealed to their 
old and but partially subdued appetite for strong drink, 
and many were drawn aside, in whom the appetite had 
not yet been fully formed. The efforts of the brethren 
to secure the abolition of the grog ration, brought upon 
them a weight of odium very difficult to bear. The ac- 
cusation and slanders of the slaves of the tub were in- 
cessant, and well-nigh overwhelming. To escape this 
fearful daily, hourly nagging of their fellows, the unstable 
yielded, and took their places in the line with the rest ; 
meanwhile, persuading themselves that it was no sin 
to drink their whiskey, and if they did nothing worse 
they would be well off. Thus were their consciences 
wounded and their resolutions to live " above the world " 
weakened. 

Despite these drawbacks, however, there were frequent 
inroads made upon the enemy's ranks, and some who 
came to the meetings to scoff remained to pray. The 
faithfulness of the brethren was rewarded by occasional 
manifestations of the presence of the Holy Spirit of prom- 
ise, and they were endued with power from on high. At 
the close of the first year of the cruise, a blessed revival 



412 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

took place, and instead of a few souls gathered at the 

place of prayer — more than a third of the ship's company 
and not a few of the officers of the ship were gathered to 
listen to the invitations of mercy and to testify of the lov- 
ing kindness of God to their own souls. In a letter from 
Lient. J , dated December 13th, 1859, he writes: 

" I am but too happy to inform you that there has been an 
awakening among our crew. As far as I can see and learn, 
there has been nothing out of the usual order of events to engender 
it. It is manifestly the work of God's spirit. The interest 
showed itself when we were least expecting it. You will remem- 
ber how despondingly I spoke in my last letter. The prospect 
then was dark indeed. But how often has it been proved that man's 
extremity is God's opportunity. At the very time when we 
were ready to halt and our hearts were faint within us, a light 
shone out of the darkness. Our little band of praying men, who 
had met for many months, in a close and confined part of the 
ship, to offer up prayer and praise unto the Most High, and who 
were more than once called to mourn over the departure from 
among them of some misguided brother who had fallen under the 
tempter's power, until there was scarcely more than two or three 
gathered together, are now cheered by an increase of worshippers, 
and more commodious quarters. 

"On a quiet Sabbath evening, while the voice of prayer and 
praise is ascending, the usual noises cease. One after another 
of the crew approaches the place of prayer. Men known to be 
living in open opposition to God, who have been foremost in 
deriding his followers, are seen to draw near until quite a crowd 
is assembled. The next meeting is likewise well attended. 
More strange faces are seen. Men dead in trespasses and in 
1 t > long for the sweet hour of prayer. The ques- 
tion is this increasing crowd, this unusual inter- 
ims deep, still, uninterrupted attention ? Surely these men 
are not drawn by curiosity. Neither do they come as before for 



THE CALL OF THE SPIRIT. 413 

ridicule. No, blessed be the name of the Lord ! The Holy 
Spirit has touched their hearts, the conscience is awakened. The 
1 still, small voice ' has spoken. Now, it occurs to us that our 
prayers are being answered. Strange that we should have had so 
little faith. The interest is silent, but evidently deep. There is no 
vain boasting or parade about it, and so entirely is it confined to 
the crew, that I doubt if, at this time, a single officer in the ward 
room, with one exception, knows a word about it. May God 
in his great mercy grant, that many now in darkness may be 
enlightened from above, and brought into the fold. Yea, that 
all may come to a saving knowledge of the truth as it is in 
Jesus. 

1 ■ For nearly nineteen years my home has been on the deep, and 
I am not ashamed to say, I have always loved the sailor. I may 
be wrong, but the fact that a man is a sailor hides many faults 
with me, You will readily imagine, therefore, the deep interest 
and concern I feel in this most useful and much abused class of 
our countrymen, and with what pleasure, and satisfaction, and 
gratitude to God, I hear of the conversion of a sailor." 

This testimony is corroborated and enlarged by the let- 
ter of Brother Morris, dated December 26th, 1859, which 
I here give entire. My only regret is that I cannot give 
the correspondence of the brethren more fully. 

"United States Ship St. Louis, 
" San Juan de Nicaragua, December 26th, 1859. 
" Dearly Beloved Pastor — It is my pleasant duty to communicate 
to you the glorious tidings that the Lord has been graciously 
pleased to bless us with a revival. The Holy Spirit has come down 
among us with power, and I think I can confidently say, that with 
the exception of some decided infidels and bigoted Romanists, 
there are but few individuals on board, that have not more or less 
felt its influence on their hearts. The call of the Spirit, however, 
has been differently received by different persons, for while some 
have yielded to his admonitions, repented and believed, many har- 



414 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

den their hearts, and s vk to drive away serious thoughts by railing 
and their religion. In my last letter I did not 
[ upon the work as entitled to a place among revivals, as that 
term is generally accepted. Strange mixture of blindness and 
unbelief on my side, not to see the blessing when it had come, after 
having prayed so long for it ! But we find a parallel case in 
Acts xii. Looking back, however, from this advanced point in the 
work, I can trace its commencement to the first days of October. At 
that time the Lord, as an evidence of having heard our prayers, re- 
stored one from his backslidings. Since then the blessed work has 
been gohvj; on with unabated interest. I have no time to detail 
many interesting facts connected with the conversion of some of 
my shipmates ; I shall therefore confine myself to some striking 
features and peculiarities that distinguish this revival. 

" ist. As far as short-sighted man can see, and the law of cause 
and effect goes, nothing has occurred in the way of extra effort 
that can be looked upon as having contributed to bring it about. 
It must therefore be looked upon as a direct answer to prayer. 
2nd. Those once most wicked and depraved among the ship's 
company, are now among the converted. 3rd. An uncommon 
ree of sorrow and contrition for sin, has been exhibited. 4th. 
M st of the converted take, at once, an active part in our 
meetings, and some have already begun missionary labor among 
us. 

"A marine, on the day after his conversion, referring to an 
article he had read in a religious paper, in connection with the 

work onboard the North Carolina, last year, said, 'M , since 

1 it, a voice has been speaking to me, saying, that as the 
Lord has been so merciful to me, I must henceforth labor for 
him/ Thus far he has kept his promise. Another, twodaysafter 
; Christ, conducted a noon prayer-meeting in the mizzen- 
top. This man once had the disposition of an enraged tiger; 
now it is that of a gentle lamb. Once his mouth was full of 
bitterness and cursing, now, prayers and praise ; once, all hatred, 
now, all love. O that 1 could impart to you, my beloved pastor, 



CONVERTS OxN THE ST. LOUIS. 415 

a faint, yet correct idea of the spirituality and blessedness of our 
meetings of late ! I may, perhaps, be best able to gain this 
object by copying a few notes, made by me at the close of each 
day, to which I refer. 

"Sunday, December 18th, I opened the meeting with prayer, 
and reading the third chapter of the gospel of John. Oh, what a 
solemn meeting ! I suppose one-fourth of the crew were present ; 

several officers, I think five or six. P and E , in 

touching language, told their experience. They expressed to all 
present their great joy, flowing from a sense of the Saviours 
pardoning love. They invited all to come, and wash in that 
fountain in which they had been cleansed. They engaged in 
prayer, in which both seemed to have no small power Groans 
and sobs were heard all around, and the tears of penitence were 
coursing down the cheeks of many a hardened sinner. It is to 
be believed that many silent prayers for mercy, that night, went 
up from the berth-deck of the St. Louis to the throne of God, 
who ' desires not the death of a sinner, but would rather that he 
should turn and live/ Before the closing of the meeting eight 

rose for prayer. One of the officers, Mr. G , said, ' we all 

want you to pray for us. ' 

" As I hurriedly left the place of prayer to attend to my duty 
on deck, a young mizzen-top man clung to me with tears in his 
eyes, and said, ' I want to have a long talk with you, and you 
must pray for me.' Oh, merciful God, the thought is over- 
whelming, that one so unworthy as I am is thus honored, in 
being permitted to pray for and with sinners ! In having manifest 
evidences that such prayers are heard ! To the Lord, and to 
him alone, be all the praise and glory. 

"Wednesday, 21st, evening prayer-meeting, well ^attended. 

I think half of the ships company were listening. Lieut. J , 

who led the meeting, read the eleventh chapter of Hebrews, 
showing the nature of living faith. I addressed the young con- 
verts and exhorted them to diligence and prayer, in reading the 
scriptures, in watching, in self-denial, and faith in the Saviour. 



41 6 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

After dismissal, retired by the foremast to pray with one who had 
been three days under deep conviction. The little place was 
crowded. A general outpouring of souls in prayer commenced, 

and continued about an hour. B. P and S , with deep 

contrition, cried to the Lord for mercy. God grant that they 
may soon be able to rejoice in the salvation of the Lord. 

' ' The result of this revival, as far as it can be ascertained, is 
that nineteen, according to their own confession, have found the 
' pearl of great price. ' We believe that the Lord will soon bless 
OS still more. We ask the prayers of the Church for the con- 
tinuance of this blessed work among us, that souls may be con- 
verted, God glorified, and His Son honored. Amen. 

' ' It seems to me, that a decided change for the better has 
taken place in the public sentiment on board our ship. It is true 
that infidels, and a few Roman Catholics, rage, but that does not 
deter us. All the officers are now in our favor, and are kind to 
us. Last w r eek the first Lieutenant showed us his good will by 
issuing an order that no sentry on the berth-deck should on any 
pretense interfere with us while worshipping, which was the 
case the other night, when an Irish marine on post, close by us, 
interrupted one of the brethren while engaged in prayer, telling 
him, ' not to make so much noise/ We have privileges extended 
to us, that praying men on board of other ships do not enjoy. 

"Two brethren from the Sabine were on board our ship 
yesterday, Christmas day, and took part in our afternoon service. 

It was a blessed day. In the forenoon Capt. P called all 

hands to prayers on the quarter-deck. In the afternoon and 
evening we had prayer-meetings. All the brethren send you 
their love, and ask to be remembered in your prayers. Adieu ! 
May God bless you, is the fervent prayer of your affectionate 
brother in Christ" 

Another brother, writing of this work later, says: 

"The attendance on our meetings for the past month has been 
slowly but Steadily increasing. We have now an average of fifty 



CREW ON TIP-TOE. 417 

at our meetings, exclusive of outsiders, who are stretching them- 
selves on tip-toe to hear the word of life. The whole ships' 
company are engrossed with the subject of religion. It is the 
constant theme. In the hammocks at night, they talk about it — 
they even go into the tops by day to pray. God be praised for 
this glorious news ! Surely, my dear pastor, the Lord is with us, 
of a truth. Tell all the brethren the glad tidings. Tell them of 
the mighty workings of God's Holy Spirit on board the St. Louis, 
Tell them to pray for us all, that we may have grace to help, 
that we may have faith, yes, faith to appropriate the promises of 
our blessed Saviour, and give all the glory to God. " 

The good work above described continued, until the 
number of those who took active part in the meetings 
reached to over thirty, while the interest extended at 
times to more than one-half of the ship's company. 
There came, however, toward the close of i860, a falling 
away. But in the following spring, the Holy Spirit 
vouchsafed to the little band another time of refreshing, 
in which backsliders returned to their allegiance, and 
some of those who had before been passed by were 
brought under the saving power of Divine grace. 

The hearts of the brethren were once more made glad, 
and anticipated great things. But between these periods, 
Satan raged more fiercely than ever. The followers of 
Christ were hissed and hooted about the decks, as if they 
were the enemies, instead of the benefactors of their ship- 
mates. Bawdy songs were shouted in the ears of the 
disciples, while they were engaged in prayer, and in 
songs of praise. The drunkards who were confined in 
the brig, made sport of and blasphemed them and their 
worship. Under these circumstances the meeting was 
closed for a few days, but only to be re-opened and carried 
forward with unabated vigor, as soon as the culprits were 



41 8 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

discharged from their imprisonment. Under the intense 
strain to which the chain of brotherhood was thus sub- 
jected, some of the weaker links gave way, bringing pain 
to the hearts of the faithful few, who notwithstanding all 
these discouragements, continued their public service to 
the very end of the cruise, in the fall of 1861, and had 
the pleasure of seeing the work of the Lord again pros- 
pering in their hands. 

After the ship was put out of commission, the disciples 
were scattered, some of them returning to their homes, 
and obtaining employment ashore, that they might be 
able to worship God without the distractions incident to 
the ship's berth-deck. Others re-entered the navy, and 
were drafted into different ships, where they became the 
nuclei of other religious gatherings, the centres of other 
praying circles, in which the cause of God was honored, 
souls saved, and the Gospel carried to the regions lying 
beyond. Still others, after renewing their covenant vows 
at the table of the Lord, made successful applications for 
official positions as master's-mates in the service. One 
was promoted to the rank of boatswain. Two of the 
colored brethren gave themselves to a course of study 
preparatory to the Gospel ministry ; and in all proba- 
bility, have helped to continue the blessed w r ork, which 
gained such headway among the officers and crew of the 
St. Louis and extended so widely, ashore and afloat, in 
the Gulf of Mexico. 

It ought to be stated, to the credit of these devout 
seamen, that they did not limit their well-wishing and 
well-doing to their shipmates alone. Having learned 
while lying off the Tortugas, that there was no chaplain 
in Fort Jefferson, they solicited and obtained permission 



DEATH OF MORRIS. 419 

to go ashore and hold prayer-meetings among the 
soldiers quartered there. Major Arnold kindly assigned 
the bastions of the fort to them for that purpose. The 
result was, that joy was carried to many hearts, a large 
amount of religious reading matter was distributed, and 
some, who, in the absence of the ordinances had been 
cast down, were cheered, comforted and exhorted to go 
on their way rejoicing. They also subscribed of their 
own hard-earned wages to aid in building church edifices 
at Grey Town and at San Domingo, and at times even 
became true lay preachers in the very edifices they had 
paid to erect and adorn. Thus did also the disciples on 
board the Sabine, in the same squadron. Their faithful 
and untiring leader, John A. Morris, after coming ashore, 
passed his examination and received the certificate of 
captain, from the Ship- master's Association of New 
York, and continued to labor for the salvation of souls, 
taking his full share of our church work until his death, 
which took place in February, 1863, in the fifty-second 
year of his age. 

" Far from this world of toil and strife 
He's present with the Lord ; 
The labors of his mortal life 
End in a large reward." 

I cannot close this chapter without adding the follow- 
ing tribute paid to the faithful Christian character of our 
brother Morris, by a sailor who was brought to Chri:;: 
through his labor of love. The writer is one, who him- 
self, while a sailor on the berth-deck, bore his Master's 
banner into the thickest of the fight on the African coast 
for more than two years, and who, for many years after 



4-0 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

that, witnessed a good profession as an officer among the 

men of our Navy. 

" January 1 2th, 1863, 
1 ' My Dtar Pastor — I feel it my duty to say a few words to 
you in relation to the sad affliction which our church has 
rienced by the death of our good brother Morris. I believe 
I am the only one here, at present, who was on board the ' Old 
N nth,' during the revival of 1858. We were in the receiving 
ship Ohio together, in Boston, and came on to New York in the 
same draft, in 1S58. I shipped a few days before he did. I well 
remember the day when he came on board. It was late in the 
forenoon. While we were at dinner he was pacing fore and aft 
the deck, having not yet been assigned to any mess. I invited 
him to sit down and dine with us, which he did. Little did I 
think, then, that he was to be the instrument of bringing me into 
t\\2 family of God. Through his influence, I was brought to see 
myself a poor miserable sinner. I was led to repentance through 
the prayer-meetings he established. If it had not been for those 
services, I should never have come to you. On the morning 
after my conversion, I told my joy to him, and asked him to 
point out some passages of scripture for me to read. He directed 
me to 1st John ii. Oh, my dear pastor, I bless God for those 
meetings, and for his love in snatching me as a brand from the 
burning ! Many more, now scattered all over the world, will 
look back to the ' Old North' as the birth-place of their souls 
unto righteousness in 1858 and 1859. I believe brother Morris 
has gone home, and that he has many sheaves with him. He 
increased his talent tenfold. He was a faithful worker in the 
vineyard of the Lord. There are many who knew him both at 
sea and ashore, who will shed tears when they hear of his death. 
e to his ashes.' May we all, at last, meet with him at 
the right hand of God, is my sincere and heartfelt prayer." 

The writer of the above is still in the harness, and is at 
this date, February, 1884, a faithful worker in the church 
of which he is a member in New York city. 






CHAPTER XX. 

EXTENT OF THE REVIVAL — GULF SQUADRON. 

A noble winner of souls — Testimony to his usefulness — Most precious meet- 
ing — The captain's surprise — His account of it — A few more candles — 
U. S. store-ship Relief — Punishing the innocent — U. S. steam fri- 
gate Brooklyn — Work of grace — Worship in the shaft-alley — Letter from 
paymaster — Preciousness of Christian communion — Matters improving — ■ 
Encomiums on the brethren — The Brooklyn under fire — A death deal- 
ing missile — Hand of God acknowledged — Converts scattered — U. S. 
steamer Cumberland — Prayer-meeting established — Attacked by the 
Rebel ram — Bravery of the crew — Sunk with her ensign apeak — Strange 
coincidence — U. S. steamer Sabine — Worship between quarter-deck 
guns — Increase of disciples — A light in the darkness — Artillerymen 
seeking the Lord — U. S. steamer Roanoke — A faithful few — Eleven out 
of five hundred and sixty confessing Christ — One hour a week to wor- 
ship God. 

In looking over the area covered by this blessed revival, 
it will doubtless be readily observed, that in all its varied 
phases, there is a degree of resemblance, both in the 
manner of its manifestations, and in the difficulties it 
encountered. The sources of help and of obstruction 
are nearly alike in all cases ; so that, to detail the ex- 
periences of the disciples of Christ in each vessel, would 
involve a tedious repetition. To avoid this a summary, 
rather than a detailed history of each will be given. 
The successes and failures, the advances and decline of the 
cause, the facilities for carrying on the work, and the 
drawbacks experienced by the brethren of the U. S. ships 

421 



422 FIFTV YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

Savannah and St. Louis, will afford an idea of the perils. 
which generally beset the faith of the brethren, as well 
as of the sources of that encouragement to continuity and 
perseverance, by which they were in each event sus- 
tained. I will therefore state, in brief, the condition of 
things spiritual, as far as known, in the vessels compos- 
ing the Gulf Squadron between the years 1858 and 
1 861. 

On board the Powhatan, the cause of Christ was re- 
presented by a young Swede, a convert of the receiving- 
ship, and a member of our church. He was exceedingly 
zealous in his efforts for the salvation of his shipmates, 
and succeeded nobly in winning souls to Christ. I was 
in close correspondence with him, from the time of his 
conversion, in 1858, to the summer of 1865. He had, at 
that time, passed through all the perils of the war un- 
scathed. He was one of the first to enter Charleston, S. 
C, after it came into our hands, and by dint of his perso- 
nal energy, bravery, and good character, rose from before 
the mast to the position of acting-master. He was a noble 
representative of Christ, and a very amiable and indefa- 
tigable man. The estimation in which he was held by 
those who knew him best, may be seen in the following 
extract from a letter, written by a member of our church, 
in the same squadron, who visited the Powhatan in 
January, 1SG1. He says : 

" I went on hoard the flag-ship this evening, and attended the 
prayer-meetinLr. They are having glorious times. The success 

ider of the meeting, F. M , I found t^ be far beyond 

my expectations. The ship has been out but a few months, yet 
the I. I OU to the brethren as to give them 

twelve .souls for their hire. Two others are under conviction, 



A NOBLE WINNER OF SOULS. 4 2 3 

with the prospect of many more. This is the Lord's doings. I 
have reason to believe, from what I saw, that the Holy Spirit's 
influence is felt by many hearts on board that blessed ship. Oh, 
what a meeting we had ! How solemn ! What earnest, fervent 
prayers went up ! What songs of praise ! What loving invitations 
to sinners to come to the Saviour ! A great many outsiders were 
gathered, and listening — all were eager and attentive. How quiet 
and orderly on the berth-deck, so different from the condition of 
affairs with us. Quite in contrast with the fearful noise, and vio- 
lent interruptions, amid which we of the St. Louis are compelled 
to worship. It was one of the most precious meetings I ever 
attended. God grant that the work of grace, now going on, may 
continue, until the salt of the gospel has seasoned and purified 
the whole ship. Captain Mercer, who is in command of her, 
visited the brethren a few evenings ago, and expressed his great 
satisfaction at seeing Christian sailors on board his vessel, assem- 
bled for prayer. God favors these brethren greatly. They surfer 
no persecution from either officers or men. On the contrary, 
everybody seems to respect them because of their pure Christian 
lives." 

In connection with this good brother's testimony, I 
may add, what will confirm his impressions, an account 
of an interview had with the captain of the Pow- 
hatan subsequently. On her return from the gulf, I was 
introduced to Captain Mercer in the Brooklyn Navy 
Yard. After the formalities of the introduction, he said 
to me: 

"We had some of your members, Mr. Jones, on board the 
Powhatan during the last cruise ; and fine fellows they were, too. 
I'll tell you how I came to know them. We were lying at 
anchor, at the mouth of the Mississippi, in the South-west P 
and one evening, I went below to take a look at the ground 
tackling. On reaching the bottom of the ladder, I was attracted 
by a light, forward, in the eyes of her. Wondering what it 



4-4 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

a, I drew near silently, and beard men conversing in a low 
tone ; I saw, too, by the light of a single candle, that some of the 
besl men in the ship were there assembled. 1 stood in the dark- 
aiid listened. They, of course, were entirely unaware of my 
presence. While I stood there, watching and wondering, they 
sung, in a subdued voice, one of their hymns, and then one of 
tli ar number led in prayer, while they all bow r cd down before 
God Being convinced that they were in no mischief, and that 
they were engaged in divine service, I returned to my cabin, as 
quietly as I came. But the incident set me thinking. Here are 
men, said I, to myself, c who are worshipping God on board my 
ship, and I knew nothing about it. What a lesson for me ! 
What can I do to help them ? I ought at least to countenance, 
aid, and protect them/ Well) in the morning, I sent for F. 

M , who seemed to be the most prominent man among 

them, to come to my cabin. I said to him, ' M , where were 

you between two and eight bells, in the dog-watch, last night? 
Touching his fore-lock respectfully, he replied, 'In the forward 
part of the gun-deck, sir/ ' What were you doing there?' 
'Holding a prayer-meeting, sir/ 'How long have you been 
holding these meetings V ' For some months, now, sir/ 

" I expressed my satisfaction by telling him, I was glad to find 
my men engaged in so good a work, and hoped that they would 
continue. 'Is there anything/ I asked him, 'that I can do to 
help you ?' The words were scarcely out of my mouth, before I 
feared that I might have said too much ; or that my question 
might have committed me too far. He perhaps would ask more 
than I was prepared to yield. What if he should ask me to come 
and worship with them? Or to take the lead of the meeting? 
ears, however, were all speedily dispelled by the modesty of 
St He was, evidently, not inclined to take advantage 
of my offer in such a way as to compromise me. An expression of 
and gratification passed over his features. lie drew him- 
self up, hitched up his trousers, and touching his forelock again, 
said, to my incomparable relief, 'A few more candles, if you 



PUNISHING THE INNOCENT. 425 

please, sir. ' Delighted to be let off so easily, T gave the necessary 
order to have the candles, served out, and the meetings were con- 
tinued." 

On board the store-ship Relief, five converts of the 
1 Old North/ conducted aprayer-meeting, which for some 
months continued to thrive, yet, not without the usual 
accompaniment of opposition, and wilful disturbance ; 
which, whatever else failed, was kept up without abate- 
ment. At length, after enduring untold suffering for 
more than a year, three of the little band, their patience 
being exhausted, made their escape, by deserting the 
ship ; the only door left open to them. 

Such conduct was of course reprehensible and cowardly, 
and brought reproach on the cause of religion. In this 
instance, the guilty having escaped, it was quite in accord 
with the sense of justice maintained by some in authority 
to punish the innocent who remained true, for the sin of 
the guilty who had gone. The faithful ones were for- 
bidden to hold any further religious service on board. 
This prohibition continued for three months ; after which 
the first lieutenant relented, and gave permission to 
resume the prayer-meetings. This was conducted by a 
faithful member of the Baptist Mariners' church, who, 
some months afterwards, departed in the fulness of a 
Christian hope, to that good land, where persecution and 
opposition are unknown ; " where the wicked cease from 
troubling, and the weary are at rest." 

A few true and faithful Christian men, members of the 
Baptist Mariners', and my own church, were included in 
the draft from the receiving-ship to man the Brooklyn. 
The Paymaster, Thomas H. Looker, a devoted man of 
God, was also attached to her, and became an efficient 



420 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

helper with them in Christian work. He gave to the men 
his counsel and sympathy, and took part in their prayer- 
meetings, which he sometimes led. These meetings were 

conducted, with exceptional interruptions, during the 
entire cruise of about three years. He also read the 
church service to them on Sabbath afternoons. At one 
time in February, 1859, six conversions were reported, 
as resulting from their labors, with many more anxiously 
inquiring. Concerning this, one of the men wrote me : 

"We have our meeting on the berth-deck, forward, alongside 
of the galley, every night. A great many of the crew attend. 
We expect a more suitable place will be assigned to us shortly. 
The meetings at first were attended faithfully by some of the line 
officers, and the assistant-engineers. The difficulty of obtaining 
a suitable place, large enough to accommodate all who should 
attend, seemed to be in the way of the desired success." 

The Christian men were subjected, too, to the usual 
annoyances, and carried on their work under difficulties. 
Nevertheless, two nights in the week were set apart for 
Bible class, two for prayer-meetings, and one for experi- 
ence meeting. In June, the first and third assistant- 
engineers were brought to confess Christ, and were added 
(.0 their numbers. One of these united, subsequently, 
with the Baptist church in Pensccola. 

Still later, in April, 1861, I received the following, 
written by Paymaster Looker, for presenting which 
entire, I make no apology, as it reveals a condition of 
things, such as we of the land can scarcely imagine, and 
such as is only equalled by the worshipping " Arinarii," 
or sand diggers in the catacombs, under the city of 
R :ne. 

11 Reverend and Dear Sir — Your letter was welcomed heartily, 



LETTER FROM A PAYMASTER. 427 

and I thank you with all my heart for your kind words of 
sympathy and encouragement. Alas ! we very much need 
sympathy here. However, things are gradually brightening with 
us again. Our meetings are underweight and prospering once 
more, and I trust, nay, I feel real good is resulting therefrom. 
The place to which we are driven, that we may uninterruptedly 
hold our meetings, is a very humble one ; very contracted, and 
from its character and position is not over-pleasant, being away 
down in the run, in the shaft-alley. It is both narrow and dark. 
It is rather trying, as we have steam on more or less, all the 
time ; but, still, for all this, it is a place in which we can worship 
and wait upon God in all freedom and fulness. Thank God for 
that ! For oh, it is so comforting and precious to meet together 
in Christian communion ! We, situated as we are here, prize the 
privilege far more than you on shore can do. You can enter 
God's house, surrounded by Christian brethren. I am rejoiced 
that I can now meet with our little band as in days past. 

" For a long while, owing to the outrageous lawlessness of the 
crew, and our meeting- places being constantly taken up for 
1 brigs/ or prisons, all was broken up. I could not be with 
them. But gradually, step by step, things have improved. The 
men have taken advantage, as they could, of opportunities, so 
that we are now fairly afloat again. It had been maliciously 
reported that the faithful few of our praying men, only gathered 
at the meetings because I, being with them there, might give 
them a lift to some good billet. I was, therefore, as I have been 
ever since, under restraint with regard to them. I did not go 
down at all, at first, fearing that, by doing so, 1 might injure the 

cause unwillingly. But soon I started, and Mr. B , our first 

assistant-engineer, an excellent man, one of the noblest, and a 
Christian brother, accompanied me." 

Speaking of some of our dear brethren who had borne 
the heat and burden of the day, amidst the foulest 
obloquy, he testifies to their Christian faithfulness under 
trial, thus : 



4?2 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

"That man, A. A , is as true as steel. I think him as 

true and faithful a man as I ever met. A consistent, earnest 
Christian, and withal a very smart fellow. One of our new con- 
verts too, so far as I can judge and hear, F. P , is an exceed- 
ingly intelligent Christian. C and A are still of us ; 

and others, whose names I cannot remember. I believe I told 
you about my failure after all to get our captain to permit me to 
read the service publicly, on Sundays. He promised me, but 
something happened, on the first Sabbath after, to prevent ; 
and, well — he broke down, could not get up the courage, 
evidently, to initiate it. The old story, you know, * What will 
the world say ?' Thanks be to God ! private worship cannot be 
taken from us. We cannot be prohibited from honoring God, 
and from walking in His ways. The people of this world are 
neither our judges here, nor the arbiters of our eternal destiny. 

" We are in the midst of perilous times here, and now every 
moment, almost, we expect to be engaged in battle with the 
rebels. God grant it may not be, and yet, if it must come, we 
must do our duty. We must uphold and defend our govern- 
ment, and stand by our glorious flag, at every hazard, and at 
every cost, even unto death. As true men, as loyal officers and 
crews, and as faithful Christians, we must do our whole manful 
duty. No man on earth would more deplore the sad necessity 
of fighting these infatuated and misguided countrymen of ours. 
]>ut my duty is plain ! We have prepared ourselves for the worst. 
Pray for us, that, if we are killed, we may be ready for eternity/' 

One year later I find the meetings still kept alive, 
though with occasional interruptions, on account of the 
unsettled condition of things, growing out of the rebel- 
lion. A brother wrote me, under date of March, 1862: 

"We still have the privilege of meeting. The captain we 
now have is a pious man, and reads the service every Sunday. 
One more soul has come out on the Lord's side.'' 

Shortly after the receipt of the above, the Brooklyn 



THE BROOKLYN UNDER FIRE. 429 

entered into the fearful engagement with the batteries 
and forts, from the mouth of the Mississippi to Vicksburg. 
Many of the brethren passed through the fiery ordeal 
unhurt, although in some instances escape seemed al- 
most by a special interpositon of divine Providence. 
Nor did these men fail to recognize and acknowledge the 
goodness that spared them. One of them wrote, giving 
a description of the passage of the lower forts — Jackson 
and St. Philip, and adds: 

" God has showed us, in this last fight, special mercy. We 
fought three hours under heavy fire. The shot and shell fell all 
around us like hail. Thank God ! he is the hearer of prayer. 
Our captain is a shining witness for the truth, and as firm as a 
rock. Remember our little flock in your prayers." 

Another wrote in May, from the upper Mississippi, off 
Vicksburg : 

" God has blessed us greatly in these trying times. He has 
brought me safely out of the heat of battle, where danger was on 
every side. I trusted in Him, and I am delivered. I thought, in 
the midst of the fight, of the promise in Psalm xci. 7 : 'A 
thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand, 
but it shall not come nigh unto thee !' It was fulfilled in my 
case. The crew of my gun were cut up awfully. Out of seven- 
teen, six only were left uninjured. A shot from the shore tore 
through our bulwarks, scattering the splinters right and left. It 
could not have missed me, if I had been standing in my usual 
place at the gun. But the hand of God^was in it. I was in the 
port, loading the gun, just at the moment it struck us above my 
head. It was God who guided me there, so that it did not come 
nigh unto me." 

On board of the Pawnee, Cumberland, Congress, 
Wyandotte, Mohawk, and Pursuit, converts of the 



430 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

44 OKI North," were scattered in twos and threes; but 
in some cases they were compelled to be content to hold 
their own personal conmunion with God, and private 
converse with their shipmates. The Cumberland, I 
believe, was the only ship in the squadron that had a chap- 
lain. He, with the executive officer and two seamen, 
when she sailed, were all — as far as I could learn — who 
represented " the faith once delivered to the Saints." 
One of the two, wrote me in March, 1861 : 

''We hold our prayer- meeting every Sunday evening. Our 
chaplain, I am sorry to say, does not interest himself in us. I 
went to him three times to obtain the privilege of holding a 
nightly prayer-meeting ; but he only put me off with promises. 
At last I went to our executive officer, and obtained from him 
the privilege we craved, and a place to hold our service. The 
Lord blessed our efforts. Five of our shipmates have been con- 
verted, and more are under conviction. We are praying that 
many more may yet be added to our number. There were only 
two of us forward, when we left New York, the doctor, steward, 
and myself. We are now seven. Pray for us all, that we may 
hold out faithful unto the end." 

In May, he wrote : "We have been compelled to give up our 

of worship ; we are hoping to have a more suitable place 

jned us. Many of our men say that they want to be 

Christians, but they fear that they cannot endure the scorn of 

their shipmates.' 1 

The brave but hopeless fight which this ship and the 
Congress made with the Rebel ram Mcrrimac, in Hampton 
ids, in March, 1S62, has passed into history as one 
of the many noble exhibitions of bravery displayed in 
naval warfare. The action, in which she went down 
with her ensign apeak, was fought on the 8th of March. 
On the 5th, I received a letter from the brother, quoted 



A DEATH-DEALING MISSILE. 43 I 

above, bewailing the persecutions to which they were 
subjected for Christ's sake, and expressing the hope that 
there would be no fighting, and that he might soon be 
permitted to go home. A postscript was added by an- 
other hand — one of the five new converts, asking me to 
send him a copy of Baxter's " Saints Rest/' and expressing 
the hope that he might soon be enabled to abandon 
the sea forever. Only three days after I received those 
communications, both the writers were cut in two, at the 
same instant, by a shot from the Merrimac, while at 
quarters at the same gun. Thus the one reached home 
sooner than he expected, and in a far different sense. 
The other not only abandoned the sea forever, but became 
speedily acquainted with the " Saints Rest." He learned 
more of that rest in a short time than Baxter could have 
taught him. Aye ! more than Baxter when writing ever 
knew. The chaplain, it was reported, went down with 
the ship. 

With the Congress, the affair terminated somewhat 
differently. She too, had among her crew, seven men 
of God, true and faithful, on the day the Merrimac at- 
tacked her. One of the seven wrote me under date of 
March 5 th, three days before the action : 

"My Saviour 'sticketh closer than a brother/ He is with 
me wherever I go, even on shipboard. The Lord always takes 
care of his children. He brought me into this ship. Oh, 
brother, 

1 God moves in a mysterious way 
His wonders to perform.' 

" We have started a meeting for prayer. Four men have been 
converted since we commenced. I do believe, that if this ship 
stays out two years, all, officers and men, would be converted. 



432 1 Ii TV YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

Our captain is a religious man. Some of the men scorn us and 
r at us. Inn the officers are our friends. God has provided 
protection for us — oh, God always protects his own." 

This letter was signed by seven brethren, who asked 
our prayers. To the glory of God, and as an exemplifi- 
cation of their faith, it ought to be stated, as the writer 
informed me afterwards, God did " protect his own" in 
that fearful fight, for not a hair of the head of one of the 
seven was injured. This good brother carried the ban- 
ner of the cross into seven different vessels of war, after 
that, and witnessed a good confession for Christ in each 
one of them. He has been faithful in his day and gen- 
eration since, and at this date (November 3rd, 1883,) is 
a living and working Christian. His light shines on the 
coast of Japan, where he is in command of a Japanese 
steamer, trading between Yokohama and Hong-Kong. 
THE U. S. SHIP SABINE. 

There were on board the Sabine, when she left to join 
the Gulf Squadron, in 1859, three devout men, new con- 
verts, from the parent hive. They at once entered upon 
their Master's work with much energy and new-born 
zeal. They were not permitted, at first, to hold public 
service. This however did not dampen their ardor, 
nor prevent them from laboring for the souls of their 
worldly-minded shipmates. The spirit manifested by 
these faithful men, is shown in their correspondence. 
In ( )ctobcr, 1859, one of them wrote : 

" I am sorry to say that our captain will not allow us to hold 
any public service. Yet we meet together between two guns 
every ni^ht We sing and pray. The officers know all about 
it, but no one disturbs us. We were only two, that met at first ; 
now, we are nine." 



WORSHIP BETWEEN QUARTER-DECK GUNS. 433 

Another brother, later, says : 

"We have no opportunity to hold public prayer- meetings. 
But, bless the Lord, some of us get together in the evening and 
recount the goodness and mercy of God to our bodies as well as 
to our souls. We strive to comfort one another by repeating tin 
promises of God to his faithful ones, and thus help each other on 
the blessed way. I thank the Lord that I, the vilest of the vile, 
ever started in his service. T am determined, God assisting me, 
with or without the public means of grace, come weal, come 
woe. sickness or health, to serve Him, even unto death, his grace 
sustaining me, for I am helpless alone. " 

Subsequently, on application to the captain for per- 
mission to hold their meetings on the berth-deck, he 
answered, " there is no room below ; you may sing and 
pray between two of the quarter-deck guns, and no one 
shall molest you. But," he added, with emphasis, " don't 
make too much noise." Some time after this, the quarter- 
deck was required for theatricals and negro minstrelsy, 
and the praying men were relegated to the now deserted 
gun-deck. Here, in the darkness, and in obedience to 
the Divine command, they " assembled themselves to- 
gether," and nightly exhorted each other to hold converse 
with God, and to pray for the success of his cause among 
their shipmates. In November, i860, the number of 
the disciples had increased to ten. In March, a brother 
wrote : 

"God has answered our prayers by increasing our numbers. 
At last we have permission from the captain to have a lamp every 
night. We have eighty artillerymen on board. The first day 
they came on board, we invited them down to our meeting. 
They were surprised to find a prayer-meeting in a man-of-war. 
Two of them are already seeking the Lord. There are now 
*9 



434 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

thirteen of us, altogether. This is the very time we have been 
praying for, For the last twenty months. Pray for us! and let 
us praise God's holy name together. 'These men have been 
providentially sent here, and I hope they will carry the glad 
tidings with them into the army. Make special prayer that we 
may have the blessing of the Lord, without which we can do 
nothing." 

These devoted men continued their meetings and their 
efforts for souls, until the term of their enlistment ex- 
pired. Some of them entered other vessels of war, and 
carried the blessings of the gospel with them, into their 
respective ships. They were in the habit, as opportunity 
offered, of visiting and corresponding with their Christian 
brethren on the different vessels composing the Squadron, 
exhorting and encouraging them to faithfulness. One 
of them, writing to the St. Louis, says : 

"lam happy to inform you that there is a little band of faith- 
ful ones on board the Roanoke. They hold their meetings on 
the berth-deck. Thank God we are not alone. If there were 
only a few of God's people in every ship in our Navy, what a 
blessed thing it would be ! for, by the help of God, this well- be- 
gun work must increase ; and if we are faithful to Him, this will 
be a glorious Navy indeed, one in which all are united in praising 
and glorifying God." 

In corroboration of the above, it may be stated, that 
four members of our church, converts of the receiving- 
ship, carried the leaven of gospel truth on board the 
frigate Roanoke in January, 1859. In March following, 
one of them, in a letter to me, said : 

" Our men leave no means untried to persecute us, but, thank 
God, they have not succeeded yet, in turning any of us back to 
the world." 



ONE HOUR A WEEK TO WORSHIP GOD. 435 

In May, he writes : ' ' We have had a prayer- meeting but once 
in many months. We asked our chaplain to secure us a place 
for prayer, but hitherto without success. God is with us daily 
and hourly to strengthen us all." 

In December, 1859, the news came that there were ten 
professing Christians among them, and that a weekly 
prayer-meeting had been established. In January, i860, 
they say : 

1 ' We are members of different churches, but we are all work- 
ing together for the Lord. A meeting once a week is all that is 
allowed us. Pray for us that we may grow in grace. There are 
five hundred and sixty souls on board of our ship, and but 
eleven of us who are confessing Christ. A man-of-war is a sad 
place for a person to try to serve God. Such a one is made 
sport of, and is but illy esteemed. Thank God we can overcome 
evil with good." 

In April the meeting was very well attended. One 
hour a week was all the men were allowed to worship 
God. The service was held on the berth- deck, amid- 
ships, and though so small that twenty persons filled it to 
its utmost capacity, many of the crew attended, standing 
up outside. The meeting was continued until the ship 
was put out of commission ; with what result the final 
day alone will reveal. Some of these Christian men I 
have been enabled to follow for years, and to mark the 
integrity and purity of their lives. Some have ceased 
" from their labors, and their works do follow them." 



CHAPTER XXI. 

STORM AND CALM — A WILD CHRISTIAN. 

The sea-boy's story — Immoral practices — The street preacher — Danger of 
hell-fire — Sincere prayer — From storm to calm — New life — Good news — 
U. S. steamer Congress — U. S. steamer Vermont — Moral courage — Aca- 
demic studies — Captain — Yokahama — Present usefulness — Ferdinand 
Ix>uis — A wild Christian — Converted — U. S. steamer Congress — U. S. 
steamer Flag — Working for Christ — Enters the army — U.* S. steamer 
Iroquois — Happy in domestic life. 

In September, i860, a Danish lad, who is to-day a 
living monument of the abundant mercy and grace of our 
covenant-keeping God, handed me the following interest- 
ing narrative : 

"Dear Sir — Enclosed is a brief sketch of my life up to the 
time of my conversion. 

11 1 was bom in Denmark. It pleased God to bereave me of 
my parents at the age of four years ; after which I was taken to 
live with an uncle until I was fourteen. To him, under God, I 
owe gratitude for moral habits and good education ; but although 
very moral, he was not a converted man, and therefore I did not 
see much more than the form of religion as long as I remained 
at home. After going to sea, I gave way to many immoral 
practices common to seafaring men, and for years was travelling 
rapidly on the broad road to destruction. But it pleased God to 
turn my feet into the way of peace, in the following manner. 

"In the fell of the year i860, I was in New York, and one 
Sunday afternoon went to a meeting held on a canal boat in Old 
436 



THE SEA-BOY'S VISION. 437 

Slip. The preacher remarked that he had recently stood at the 
death-bed of some sailors who were many hundreds of miles from ■ 
home, with no kind mother, sister or friend near to comfort them 
in their last moments. These remarks made a deep impression 
on my mind, and I felt that I ought to prepare for eternity, as 
I might soon be placed in a like condition. After meeting was 
closed I received, at my request, a New Testament and some 
religious reading matter ; and I began from that day, to seek for 
what I felt I needed, but of which I then knew nothing. A few 
Sundays after this I received an invitation to come to the Mari- 
ners' church on the corner of Madison and Catherine streets. 
There I heard a sermon preached by the Rev. Charles J. Jones, 
in which he earnestly pleaded with sailors to flee from the wrath 
to come, and embrace life everlasting ; pointing them to Christ 
as the only way. I became deeply interested, for I felt that he 
was explaining how to find that 'one thing needful ' which I was 
seeking. From that time I became a regular attendant at nearly 
every meeting held in that church, as long as I remained on 
shore. After four days earnestly seeking for this peace of mind 
and leaving off my former sinful habits, I found gradually an 
inward peace and joy taking possession of my mind, and instead 
of going to the places of worldly amusement, where I had delight- 
ed to go before, I now found joy and pleasure in going to the 
house of God and associating with his children. Before I went to 
sea again I expressed the hope and belief that I was converted ; 
but by what I afterwards experienced I came to the conclusion 
that I was not truly converted until the next voyage, which I 
soon afterward made, and during which, the following incident, 
which I shall never forget, occurred. 

" It was on board a schooner bound to Wilmington, N. C. 
I was sitting in the forecastle one afternoon, reading in the New 
Testament which had been given to me at Old Slip. I read that 
1 whosoever shall say to his brother, thou fool, shall be in danger 
of hell-fire/ I suppose I had heard these words before, but never 
had they made such a deep impression on my mind. Never 



43^> FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

before had I applied them to myself as I did now. I could not 
read further, but laid the book down, and went on deck, 
reflecting on these words. I felt that I was in danger of hell-fire, 
for 1 knew that 1 had often committed that crime on which that 
dreadful judgment was pronounced. The words sounded con- 
tinually in my ears, and 1 felt myself a guilty and condemned 
sinner. My past sins rose up before me like immoveable moun- 
tains. I was in deep agony and distress ; for though I was 
looking up to heaven and crying to the Saviour for mercy, it 
appeared to me as if He would not hear me, and then the awful 
fear came over my soul that I had gone so far in sin that I could 
not be pardoned. Oh, truly, no mortal can realize the awful 
bunkn which the meek and lowly Saviour bore when, besides 
bearing his cross amidst the sneers and ridicule of those for 
whose salvation he was about to die, He had to bear the sins of 
all the world. Nor can we wonder that while bearing such a 
burden, hanging with his mangled body on the cross, He should 
utter that agonizing cry, ' My God ! My God ! why hast thou 
forsaken me?' 

"I remained in this condition until dark, and was anxiously 
awaiting an invitation to the prayer-meeting held every morning 
and evening in the cabin, that I might ask the captain and mate, 
who were professors of religion, to pray for me. After waiting a 
while, the mate came forward. He put his hand on my shoulder 
to speak to me, but was surprised to find me in tears. I told 
him that I was a great sinner in the sight of God, and that I felt 
there was no pardon for me. He informed me that he himself, 
had similar feelings at times, and he believed it was a suggestion 
of the Evil Spirit ; ' but,' said he, ' let us go forward and pray/ I 
went along with him. We knelt together on the deck, unob- 
served by any but our God, and there we both pleaded earnestly 
with Him, who alone can save poor sinners. Yes ! I know that 
•ver offered a sincere and honest prayer to God for mercy 
pardon for my sins, it was on that evening. But mark the 
glorious result ! After praying together for some time, the mate 






FROM STORM TO CALM. 439 

went aft. I stood up, and in a few moments a wonderful change 
came over me, and I do not think that I can explain it in a bet- 
ter way than this.— It was as if there had been a great and terri- 
ble storm within my bosom, the billows roaring and lashing, and 
everything dark and gloomy, previous to the prayers we had 
offered up to heaven. But gradually, as we prayed, the storm 
seemed to calm down, and at the end of the prayer, after I found 
myself alone, it became perfectly calm within my bosom. A 
few moments afterwards I experienced such an unmistakable 
evidence in my heart, that my sins, though many, were all for- 
given, I felt an unspeakable joy and peace ; and while looking 
up on that beautiful calm starlight evening I imagined I could see 
my blessed Saviour in the starry heavens standing with his eyes 
beaming with love and pity and his arms outstretched, saying, as 
he did to his disciples of old when he met them on the sea, 
1 Be of good cheer, it is I ; be not afraid. ' With these very 
words he that evening rebuked the dreadful storm that had been 
raging within me. Yes ! blessed be God, I heard him that 
evening saying to me, ' Peace, be still. ' ' Thy sins are all for- 
given thee I' 

"Your humble brother in the Lord, F. R." 

Twenty-three years have rolled into eternity since then. 
That young sailor still lives, and his whole subsequent 
course has attested the genuineness of the marvellous 
change which came over his spirit on that starlit evening 
of the long ago. It is pleasant therefore to record the 
facts which follow. On his return from that voyage, he 
presented himself as a candidate for membership, and on 
the 2nd of November, i860, entered into covenant with 
God and his Church, " to watch over his own heart and 
life in the fear of the Lord, and to guard against every- 
thing which might bring dishonor on the cause of relig- 
ion, and especially to exert himself in every right way to 
promote religion among seamen, to the end that God may 



440 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 



be glorified in their salvation/ 1 I have followed his career 
with interest ever since, and can bear witness to the faith- 
fulness with which he has kept his covenant vows. In 
the fall of 1 86 1, I received a letter from a city missionary 
in London, which contained the following: 

"In the course of my ship visitation in the East India Docks, 
I was brought into communion, on board of the American ship 
Silas Greenman, with two young sailors whom the Lord had 
most gloriously blessed through your instrumentality. They 
are not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, but by the consistency of 
their lives have done much good among their shipmates. They 
wish me to assure you that you are not forgotten by them. This 
I am sure will be to you a good encouragement to go on in 
your work of faith and labor of love. 

" Frank Rogers says that through your labors the word of the 
Lord has been made precious to his soul. He is still following 
the footsteps of the Lord, and is making known to his shipmates, 
wherever he can, that gospel which is able to make them wise 
unto salvation, through faith in Jesus Christ. The spirit of God 
is n >w moving abroad upon the ocean with saving power. I 
have seen a ship's crew of eighteen souls, who were converted to 
God without the agency of any man. They were brought under 
conviction of sin at sea, and cried to God only for mercy." 

In February, 1862, this dear young brother was by a 
strange Providence brought to Newport News, Va., a few 
days before the U. S. frigate Congress was about chang- 
ing her crew. He enlisted in her, and at once began to 
work for the salvation of his shipmates. On the 2nd of 
March he wrote me, saying how wonderfully God had 
led him to his ship, and rejoicing that he was in the 
happy path of life. He said : 

11 We are eight Christian brothers on board. We have prayer- 
meeting three times a week. I am happy that I came to this 



MORAL COURAGE. 441 

Christian country and find people ready to sympathise with the 
poor sailors. I am content to go where the Lord sends me. I 
have given my heart entirely to the Lord, to work for him alone. 
Four of the crew have been converted and joined us in our ser- 
vice. Some of our shipmates scoff and jeer at us, but our captain 
is a religious man, and he is our friend. God always protects his 
own. " 

This letter was signed by eight men, all of whom, 
marvellous to relate, in the terrible action with the iron- 
clad rebel ram Merrimac, on the 8th of March, just eight 
days after the date of the letter, passed through the fear- 
ful conflict in which the Congress was taken, without a 
scratch. When the rebel tug came alongside to take the 
remainder of the crew prisoners, Frank jumped out of 
one of the lower deck ports to swim to the shore ; but 
being exhausted a few yards from the beach, he sank, be- 
came unconscious, and was hauled out of the breakers by 
some soldiers who came to rescue any helpless one that 
might escape. He was resuscitated and subsequently 
sent to New York to the receiving-ship North Carolina, 
and thence drafted to the U. S. line-of-battle ship Ver- 
mont, then at Port Royal, S. C. 

" His first impulse on entering upon his duty was to provide 
for a public religious sendee. He heard that the officers were 
not favorable to such gatherings, yet learning that a meeting was 
called by one of the men for the evening, his heart rejoiced, and 
at the appointed time he went below on the berth-deck, where he 
found a colored man, solitary and alone, standing up to speak 
for Jesus, and surrounded by a gang of men who were mocking 
and scoffing and throwing things at him. He immediately 
sprang to the side of his colored brother and announced himself 
a disciple of the Lord Jesus. He said, * I thanked God in my 
heart that he had opened a door for me to enter and testify of 

19* 



44- 



FIFT\ YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 



the goodness of our Messed Saviour to these men, who had never 
a meeting on board their ship.' The promptness and 
bravery displayed by his advocacy of Christ brought silence to the 
crowd. This was broken by the voice of an aged man, the 
gunner of the ship, who reproved them, and claimed that the 
soul oi the colored disciple of Jesus was whiter in the sight of 
God than any of his persecutors." 

Having inaugurated a good work here, he was drafted 
to the U. S. steamer Onward, at Charleston, S. C. 
From that vessel he wrote, June 26th, 1862 : 

" Little did you think when you addressed your letter to me 
on board the Congress, that I should receive it here ; yet so it is, 
and I live to read it after God has so wonderfully delivered me 
from all harm in that fatal battle. It was indeed a battle that 
will never be forgotten. Often do the tears come to my eyes 
when I reflect on the past. How many of my poor shipmates 
fell on board that ship who were not prepared to die, though 
they were warned by me and my brethren, night after night. 
My heart is grieved within me, because in every ship I see so 
many who neglect this great salvation, their own highest welfare. 
Oh, my brother, pray, and ask your church to pray for my poor 
blindfolded shipmates ; and that I may love and serve God 
wherever I go, and be a bright and shining light in his service. 
I came aboard here a couple of weeks ago, and as far as I can 
learn, I am the only professor of religion in the ship. I let my 
shipmates know that I am a follower of Christ, and have urged 
them to flee from the wrath to come. We are lying abreast of 
Fort Sumter and expect to be engaged in an attack on the city, 
'a will be done, whether I die or live. I am ready to die, if 
he will, or to live and labor for him. If we do not meet on 
earth, 1 hope to meet you in heaven." 

1 weeks later he acknowledged the receipt of a 
letter ^ind reading matter, and gave an account of the 



MORAL COURAGE. 443 

disposition of the same and the observed results. He 
had obtained permission from the captain to hold relig- 
ious service, and the promise of protection from insults 
or disturbance. He was in his element while reading to 
and praying with his shipmates. A place had been 
selected on the berth-deck, where everything done would 
be under the eyes of the officers. Only a few attended 
at first, but he said he remembered what the blessed 
Saviour said of the value of one soul, and that there is 
joy in the presence of the angels over the repenting 
one. 

Two months later he tells me of the increase of the 
numbers in attendance, including officers, and gives an in- 
teresting account of the services. And still later, having 
received from me hymn-books and other reading matter, 
in acknowledging the receipt of them, he said : 

" I do from my heart thank you over and over again for your 
kindness in sending the hymn-books. I can now cany them 
with me from ship to ship. Last Sunday I could put a hymn- 
book in the hands of every one who came to the little meeting. 
I shall, by the grace of God, meet you in heaven, with many 
stars in your crown. " 

In January, 1863, the Onward came to New York. 
He expected to be paid off and then apply for an officer's 
position. But it was not to be as he desired, and hence 
he wrote, in February : 

" I was disappointed in not getting the position I desired ; but 
instead was sent on the Onward again. I am glad God's ways 
are not our ways. Everything he does is for the best. I have a 
library now, and have commenced our meetings for prayer. God 
seems to bless me wonderfully. I confess 1 never met officers 
who treated me with more kindness. The captain himself 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 



edcourages me with his presence in the meeting. Shortly after 
we reached Rival, he made me a quarter-master, in order that I 
might have more time to attend to religious services. A few 
weeks ago we took a blockade runner, and I with two officers and 
six men were put on board as a prize crew to bring her to Key 
West, where I now am. While I was on board the Onward, I 
did not see much fruit from my labors, but I believe that the seed 
sown will bear fruit that may not come to my notice/' 

At Key West he was transferred to the schooner 
Beauregard. He found the crew very immoral, but he 
said, " I will try to let my light shine. I am beating 
up against the strong current which is carrying so many 
poor fellows down to ruin." October 12th, 1863, having 
heard of my transfer from the Mariners' church to the 
Sailor's Snug Harbor, he wrote, " I am glad you arc still 
laboring for the men of the sea, for whose welfare you 
have done so much. Although I am contented with 
my present lot, having been promoted in the service, 
yet I could wish to see the work of the Lord prosper, 
as in the Congress. But the will of the Lord be done." 

In the summer of 1864, we enjoyed a short visit at 
our home from this faithful servant of God, who, after 
discussing the project of studying for the ministry, 
thought it perhaps would be better for him and give him 
a wider range of influence, to continue at sea and serve 
the Lord among his shipmates. He therefore entered 
the academy at South Berwick, Me., for the purpose of 
studying navigation, hoping that as an officer he could 
labor with greater prospect of success. From this aca- 
demy he wrote the following : 

" lam still on the Lord's side, striving in my feeble way to 
stand up for my blessed Saviour and honor and glorify his blessed 



YOKAHAMA. 445 

name ; and by his grace assisting me, I always mean to do so, ana 
live so that I may be a light wherever he sends me. " 

Under date of September 8th, 1865, he wrote : "I love my 
blessed Saviour now more than ever, and find it still my chief 
joy to confess him before a sinful world. If my kind Father 
above permits me to command a ship, she shall be a floating 
Bethel. I love to point the sons of the ocean to a crucified and 
risen Saviour. The Lord graciously bless you and your dear 
family with many temporal and spiritual blessings ; grant you 
much success in your labors and many souls. Remember me 
kindly to your kind wife and dear children, and in your prayers ; 
that if we never meet again on earth we may meet in heaven. " 

We have never seen his dear face since ; but as a fitting 
close to this record of faithful labor, I will append an ex- 
tract from a letter received in March, 1878, by a mu- 
tual friend. It was from Yokohama, Japan, and said : 

" If Rev. C. J. Jones is still pastor of the Sailors' Snug Harbor, 
please give him my kind regards, and tell him, what I know will 
interest him much, that I am now in command of a fine steamer 
here on the coast of Japan, and yet I know it will interest him 
even more to know that I am still travelling the narrow but 
peaceful and glorious road that leads to eternal bliss and happi- 
ness. It was under his preaching, while pastor of the Mariners' 
church, New York, that I was first led to follow my dear Saviour. 
Often has my soul been refreshed and strengthened for the spiritual 
battle of life by attending the Saturday evening prayer-meeting at 
the Sailors' Home in Cherry street, New York. With a fervent 
prayer to God that he will abundantly bless and prosper that and 
all similar institutions in America, to the present and eternal 
good of the American seamen, and all others who shall come 
within their influence, 

i( I remain, dear sir, yours sincerely, F. R. 

Convnander of Steamship Fuso Maru" 



446 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

In a letter received from Rev. W. T. Austin, Mission- 
ary to seamen at Yokohama, dated November, 1880, he 
- of this Christian sailor : " He is a noble fellow and an 
honor to his profession." In June, 1881, he was in 
command of an iron steamer of 1800 tons, running to 
China, and still working for Christ. 

FERDINAND LOUIS. 

Christian seamen, as a rule, are born with their mouths 
open ; and the first evidences of their new birth are their 
joyful acknowledgments of the divine mercy in their own 
conversion, and the putting forth of missionary efforts for 
the salvation of others. An illustration of this remark is 
afforded in the labors of one who belonged to the little 
company of praying disciples on board the frigate Con- 
gress, at the time she was destroyed by the Rebel ram in 
Hampton Roads. 

He was converted through the agency of the Mariners 1 
church, and shortly afterwards shipped in the Navy to aid 
in maintaining the integrity of the Union. Thenceforth 
the name of Ferdinand Louis was destined to figure pro- 
minently in the Navy and in the Army both, until the 
surrender of the Southern forces at Appomattox, on the 
9th of April, 1865. Once awakened to a sense of his 
sins, with great sorrow of heart he sought forgiveness 
from the Saviour whom he had so long rejected. With 
the pardon of his sins came the consecration of a heart 
that burned with no ordinary affection, and the devotion 
of a life which he considered no longer his own, since he 
had been purchased with so great a price as the precious 
blood of the Son of God. 

After his marvellous escape from the death-dealing 



A WILD CHRISTIAN. 447 

missiles of the Rebel ram, in March, 1862, he was trans- 
ferred by the authorities to the receiving-ship North 
Carolina, at New York. During the stay in Brooklyn of 
the crews of the Cumberland and Congress, the citizens 
of New York gave them a grand reception in the Academy 
of Music, in April. On the 21st of May, the New York 
Port Society held its anniversary in the same building. 
On that occasion, Louis, by request, delivered a short ad- 
dress, an outline of which is here given, by way of pre- 
senting him to the reader. He was introduced as one 
of our sailor heroes of the Congress, amid great applause, 
and said : 

"My Christian friends, I thank God that I am permitted to 
speak a few words to you. I am thankful for the honor of ex- 
pressing my gratitude to these good Christians for their love to 
the sailor's soul. I have sailed under the Stars and Stripes for 
nearly twenty years. In the earlier part of my time I served 
faithfully in merchant vessels, and the last nine years and a half 
in the U. S. Navy. I therefore call this country my home. I 
thank you to-night for your sympathy with us whose home is on 
the great waters. When I first came to the United States and 
saw that beautiful flag floating over the shores of America, a land 
where seamen from every country find a home, I looked upon it 
as millions of others have done, with a happy heart. And I tell 
you there are thousands of my countrymen to-day in this land 
who will not only stand up for it, but are willing to die for it. 
My principal object this evening, however, is to thank you for 
your religious interest in men of my class. 

" I was born in what we call a Christian land, but I was a wild 
Christian. One of those who as soon as they get ashore plunge 
their head into a rum-shop and stick there until the last cent is 
gone. That is the kind of a Christian 1 was. I knew there was 
a God above, but when alcohol was in me, my power for good 



448 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

was gone One day, while standing at the door of my boarding- 
house, a man came to me and said, ' My friend, will you take a 
tract:' [said, ' Yes. ' Then he said, 'Will you come to the 
church to-night ?' I said, 4 I will,' and I went. I saw some people 

iilt and praying, and I heard some sailors telling what God 
had done for them ; and I said to myself: 'Now, Fred, now is 
the time tor you. You have served the devil faithfully for many 
a year, and what have you got for it. You have not a second 
suit to your back f But," he added, "look at the difference now ! 
I am in the service of the Lord. He is mine and I am his for ever- 
more. 

u But I want to say a word about our good ship, the Congress. 
Some have spoken of her as though we did not defend her, and 
complain that we hauled down our colors, while the Cumber- 
land went down with her ensign at the peak. Now, my friends, 
look here. Put yourselves in our place, and see whether we 
were not right in surrendering under the circumstances. We 
fought that ship until two-thirds of our men were crushed into a 

ling mfess of wounded and dead. Our last two guns were 
crimsoned with blood and brains, and you could not move a foot 
without stepping in human gore. Our officers were too brave; 
:it even when the issue w r as hopeless. Our brave Lieu- 
tenant Smith was the best man I ever saw. When the Merrimac 
hauled up under our stern, and her commander said, 'Smith, 
will you surrender V 'No,' said Smith, 'not as long as I have a 
gun to bear on you, and a man to load it/ Our commanding 
officer being killed — cut in two by a shot from the enemy, — 
Lieut. Pendergrast, as brave an officer as could be, took charge. 

ship was fired near the magazine, and we were compelled to 
surrender, as we had not a gun that would bear on the enemy. 

11 I am willing to continue in this war, to go on board any 
other vessel, and spill my last drop of blood for the flag," 

His speech was received with great enthusiam, and he 
retired amid thunders of applause. Soon after this, our 
brother was drafted to Baltimore, and entered on the 



U. S. STEAMER FLAG. 449 

crew list of the U. S. steamer Flag, which was soon after- 
wards ordered to join the South Atlantic Blockading 
Squadron. Having reported at Port Royal, she was sent 
to cruise off the coast until July, when she entered the 
harbor of Charleston, intending to take part in the attack 
on that city. His first letter to me was dated July 4th, 
1862. He says : 

"We expect to attack very soon. We are waiting for the iron 
fleet. The battle is going to be a very severe one. It is estima- 
ted that a thousand guns will be trained to bear upon us ; but 
Yankee manhood and the strong arm of God will enable us to 
conquer. The Union must be preserved and the Stars and 
Stripes wave over Sumter. Our officers are brave, and our men 
will stand by the starry flag as long as one ship remains above 
water. When this sad strife is ended, we hope to return to our 
sweet homes and our kindred to rest. But while I write this, I 
am thinking of our heavenly home, and the honor and glory we 
shall receive for our labor if we prove faithful to the end. Thank 
God for such a hope ! Although I see the dangers before me, 
and have experienced them already in the contest with the Merri- 
mac, I fear them not in my heart, for if it is my Father's good 
pleasure to call me away, his will be done. I wish every man on 
board could say the same. For my part, I will serve the Lord, 
my God, if all the evil spirits in hell should rise up against me. 
The grace of my Father in heaven is sufficient for me. If He is 
for me, who can be against me ? I trust in God who preserved 
me in the first battle, and will preserve me in the last. If you 
do not get a letter from me shortly after the battle, think of me 
as at home, in peace with God. I am sorry to say there is not 
one experienced Christian on board. I have spoken to many, 
and they tell me they would give their hearts to God, but they 
will wait until they come on shore. When I tell them death is 
certain, and this battle may be the last to them, they express sor- 
row, but do not decide for God. Pray for them and for us all." 
29 



45^ FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

August 24th, on the receipt of my pastoral letter, he 
wrote again. He says : 

"The letter has given me great satisfaction. It has been read 
by a great part of the crew forward, and by many of the officers 
aft. I have distributed books and papers, and have demands for 
copies of Testaments in different languages." 

In November, again, he gives an account of one of his 
shipmates, to whom I gave a copy of the Sailors' Com- 
panion in New York. He says : 

' ' Before he received that book, he was a drunkard and swearer; 
he is now a constant reader of the Bible. He gives thanks to 
God for the change wrought, and asks the prayers of the church, 
that he may continue in the good way." He adds : " My heart 
is full while I write. I wish you could see the earnestness of 
many of these men, and hear their conversation. Some say to 
me, ' Louis, tell me how you obtained this blessed religion ?' 
My soul is in heaven, and I seem to hear my Saviour whispering 
peace." 

This letter contained the cheering intelligence of the 
conversion of two of his shipmates, and says they are 
happy in a Saviour's love. In referring to seamen, he 
says : 

u They have all generous hearts, and will listen to the truth as 
it is in Jesus, when they are spoken to earnestly and affectionate- 
ly. I hope and pray day and night that the Lord will convince 
them all. The long letter you wrote has awakened a good many 
throughout the ship, and it is yet in circulation. The best love 
from all on board the ship is sent to you." 

In December one of his shipmates writes me: "I 
thank you very much for the beautiful books you sent 
me. They are read by us all with great pleasure." The 



WORKING FOR CHRIST. 45 I 

writer of this was the third who had been brought to 
Christ through Louis' influence and prayerful labors. 
Of him Louis says: " He sincerely loves the Lord Jesus in 
his heart." 

In April, 1863, Louis was sent North, sick. On his 
recovery he married a pious woman, and shortly after 
enlisted in the Second Regiment of New Hampshire 
Volunteers, at Concord, N. H., and from Point Lookout, 
Md., December 31st, he wrote : 

" I thank the Lord this blessed day for the privilege of writing 
to you. I hope, my dear Christian brother, this will find you 
and your dear family in good health You remember the letter you 
wrote me at Charleston. That has been a great blessing to me ; 
I have kept it ever since. I wish you would write me another 
like it. I volunteered into the army to help put this rebellion 
down, and also to work in the vineyard of the Saviour. I have 
met with many a soldier of the Cross here. We have united to- 
gether and agreed to commence a meeting in earnest. We start- 
ed with twenty members, and have now over three hundred. 
The Colonel has been kind enough to give us sufficient tim- 
ber to build a church, which we have completed, where we hold 
meetings morning and evening. It would do your heart good 
to see so many coming to the Lamb of God for pardon. It is 
supposed by all in the camp that ere long it will be a regiment 
of saints. We have upwards of twelve hundred rebel prisoners 
in barracks, which we guard night and day. 

Another letter from the same post speaks of the con- 
tinual progress of the work of the Lord among the sol- 
diers, and that the officers were becoming interested in 
the work of salvation. He was full of rejoicing not only 
on account of his own spiritual welfare, but for the re- 
vival of the work of the Lord among the soldiers. He 
says : 



45 2 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

"The Spirit of the Lord is everywhere. I scarcely dared 
believe that J should sec such a work in the army. 4 Glory be 
to God on high.' Oh, my dear brother, my soul is overflowing 
with the peace of God while I write. I fear no sickness, no 
death ; I have the Lamb of God for my guide. If my fate be to 
fall in battle for my beloved country, it will be because God has 
ordained it. I feel as if I had done very little for him since Christ 
converted my soul. I rejoice, however, in the promise of God, 
and when the labors of this life are ended, I shall go home to my 
Father's house in heaven." 

A few weeks later, on January 20th, he says : "Our church, 
which will accommodate one hundred men, is full. Officers are 
flocking in ; sons of men are becoming sons of God. My desire 
is only to love the Lord with my whole heart and to do his will. 
Oh, how delightful it is to work for the Lord." 

In consequence of so many of the States requiring 
men to fill up their quota of troops, bounties were of- 
fered in the fall of 1863, to induce men to enter the 
army. As a result, the navy was depleted of some of its 
best men, by seamen enlisting as soon as their time was 
out, and of many who deserted for the purpose of securing 
the bounty. No such inducements being offered to re- 
cruit the naval arm of the service, the consequence was 
the weakening of one branch to strengthen the other. 
This mistaken policy gave alarm, and efforts were made 
to transfer such sailors as had enlisted, from the army 
back again to the navy. In this way Louis found him- 
self once more afloat in our wooden walls. 

In May, 1864, he writes from the receiving-ship at 
New York : 

" My Dear Brother — The Saviour is still my dearest friend. 
Y"iir kind letter came as an angel to me ; and as I may lay here 
a week longer, do write me again. I would like to get ashore to 



U. S. STEAMER IROQUOIS. 453 

see you, but will not be allowed to leave the ship. Some men are 
deserting, and the innocent suffer for the guilty. I thank God 
I never did desert my country's flag, and I never will." 

In September, 1864, he thanks me again for the many 
comforting words I had sent him. He had served some 
months in the U. S. steamer Iroquois, where he had re- 
ceived my last letter. Now he writes from the Ascutney, 
thanking the Lord for the full assurance of faith which 
gladdened his heart. He adds: 

1 ' Tell the brethren not to forget to bear me up in their secret 
devotions. The Lord is doing a great work in this ship. Pray 
for me that I may stand up for Jesus. I never thought that God 
would choose a sinful man like me to such a work as I am called 
to do. Blessed be his name ! ' When he is for me, who can be 
against me. ' " 

A few days after he is rejoicing over another new-born 
soul, who becomes his companion in the Lord. In 
October he is again transferred, that he may carry the 
leaven of the Gospel of truth to the U. S. Steamer Don, 
the flag-ship of the Potomac flotilla. Here too, he finds 
a Christian brother, and rejoices in the happiness of the 
man who has made the Lord his trust. He complains 
that the moral condition of the crew makes it difficult to 
serve God among them; but still he holds fast to his in- 
tegrity, and asks prayer " that he may hold out faithful to 
the end and meet us all in heaven." On November 9th, 
after acknowledging the receipt of a thanksgiving sermon 
which I had published, and sent to the Army and Na^y, 
he closes a long letter, saying : " If Divine Providence 
does not permit us to meet on the earth, O, gracious 
thought, we shall meet in the kingdom of our blessed 
Saviour Jesus Christ." 



454 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

In March, 1S65, after three years, he is yet the happy 
child of God He says, M 1 have enjoyed many happy 
days in God's service, only as a Christian can be happy. 
I have no desire to go back to the world. You have 
been a true friend to me, and many a sailor has been led 
to Christ through your labors. I pray God that he 
will spare you to point many more to the Saviour of 
sinners." April 2nd, 1865, seven days only before the 
collapse of the rebellion, he writes : 

"lam very happy that the Lord is still so good to me. I am 
still serving my Lord and Master, and am filled with the greatest 
joy. I can sing 

' Happy day, happy day, 
When Jesus washed my sins away/ 

"When I think of my past life, I rejoice in what God has 
done for me, and by his help I will serve him as long as I live. 
A Christian brother has joined us, a member of your church. 
His conversation shows that he loves the Lord. I enjoy his 
society very much." 

This closes the correspondence of this beloved brother 
from the ship. Between the date of this letter and the 
next he had completed the term of his enlistment, and 
had returned to his home, carrying the same happy, 
trustful, confiding spirit into the walks of domestic life, 
which had borne him up amid the difficulties of the berth 
and gun-decks of a man-of-war, and in the tented field. 
In his last communication after the rebellion was crushed, 
April 24th, 1865, he wrote as follows: 

''lam once more a free man, and clear of the naval service 
be United States. I have not forgotten you, and I am per- 
suaded, from my religious experience, you have not forgotten me. 



HAPPY IN DOMESTIC LIFE. 455 

I thank God, I am happy in a Saviour's love, and I hope to be 
so until I die. My motto is honesty, sobriety, and trust in 
divine Providence. Wife and I send kind love to you I close 
with a prayer that God will bless you and keep you till his king- 
dom comes. Pray for me to the Lord, for he is good to all them 
that seek him.'' 

Thus the fire of divine love, kindled in the soul of a 
poor neglected sailor, burned on, amid the darkness of 
the ship and the camp, in storm and in calm, at sea and 
on shore, and from ship to ship, in the fury of battles, 
the hurtling storm of shot and shell, on the bloody deck 
and in the sick bay, undimmed by opposition and perse- 
cution, unquenched by human hate or devilish assault, 
illumining a life of toil and suffering and of exposure to 
danger and death, sustaining him in the presence of 
open and secret enemies, rewarding his faithfulness by 
the salvation of many precious souls among his shipmates, 
and the impressing of we know not how many more, by 
the force of his godly example, and by the sanctifying 
power of the truth of God which he bore to so many 
souls. Well may we accredit all this to the divine good- 
ness ; and while acknowledging the weakness of the in- 
strument, exclaim, " What hath God wrought ?" 

Can any one reading this simple narrative, containing 
the experience and daily deportment, amid the ever 
varying and conflicting scenes of life, through which this 
natively rude and uncultivated sailor passed, and not be 
impressed with the fact that "the Gospel is the power of 
God," not only to save but to mould and fashion the 
hearts and lives of men to an excellence not attained by 
human culture ? 



CHAPTER XXII. 

THE AFRICAN SQUADRON — MISSIONARY VOLUNTEERS. 

Spiritual light on a dark coast — United States steamer Constellation 
— Brethren favorably situated — Christian officers — Prayer and temper- 
ance meeting established — Sixty sign the pledge — Work revived — 
Meet the Niagara — Volunteer missionaries- Feelings at parting— U. S. 
steamer Mystic — Sensation in the squadron — Hearts opened — Just as 1 
am — Correspondence appreciated — Noon prayer-meeting — U. S. steamer 
Portsmouth — Twenty believers — Conduct of crew — Faithful to covenant 
vows — God worshipped nightly — In the dark — Letter from the fore- top — 
Faint yet pursuing — U. S. ships Sumter and Relief — Modern " diaspora M 
— U. S. ship Saratoga — Four faithful ones — San Jacinto — No public 
meeting — Three representatives of Christ — Testimony to their faithful- 
ness — Future of these Christian men. 

THE men composing the draft which left the receiv- 
ing-ship for Boston, in April, 1859, were apportioned to 
the vessels then fitting out. Among these were the Con- 
stellation and Portsmouth, for the coast of Africa, and 
the Hartford for the China Seas. The African Squadron 
consisted of the Portsmouth, Saratoga, San Jacinto, 
Sumter, Mohegan, Mystic, Cumberland, Marion, and 
Constellation, the latter being the flag-ship. Each of 
these vessels had her contingent of professing Christians, 
the most of whom were faithful to their Divine Master, 
and represented him among their shipmates, with a de- 
votion toward God, and a charity toward their fellow- 
men, that will compare favorably with the conduct of a 
456 



CHRISTIAN OFFICERS. 457 

like number of Christians in any part of the world. 
Their earnestness, patience, perseverance, self-denial, and 
missionary zeal, are worthy of all praise. 

On board of each of these vessels — when permission 
was granted — the daily prayer-meeting and a temperance 
meeting were established and maintained, with occasional 
interruptions, during the entire period of their absence 
from home. If spiritual light were visible, many a pre- 
cious gleam would have been seen upon the waters, by the 
denizens of the " dark Continent,'' as these vessels passed 
up and down the coast in the service of humanity, arrest- 
ing the miserable and mercenary slave-trader, and liberat- 
ing thousands of men, women and children, with dusky 
skins, it is true, but with throbbing human hearts, and 
human affections and sympathies, who were the objects 
of cruel greed. The brethren on board the flag-ship 
were more favorably situated than many others. When 
they asked permission of the first lieutenant to hold their 
prayer-meeting, he, though not a professor of religion, 
replied, " With pleasure. I am glad that I have such 
men on board, and will protect you in your meetings." 

Tney were very largely freed from persecution. They 
had the favor of their officers, some of whom were Chris- 
tian msn. Tne gunner took the lead of their meetings, 
instructed them in divine things, and encouraged them 
in the cultivation of their Christian graces. 

The Bible class and the temperance meeting were sus- 
tained weekly. Divine service maintained on the Sab- 
bath by one of the lieutenants, and intercourse with the 
brethren of the other vessels of the Squadron, when prac- 
ticable, was not only permitted, but facilitated and encour- 
aged. They write, " Wc meet with no opposition worthy 



45* FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

of the name. An occasional slur is cast upon some of 
us, but we must expect that ; and we ought to be thank- 
ful that we are accounted worthy to suffer reproach for 
Jesus' sake." 

As a result of these favorable circumstances, there was 
less defection on board the Constellation than in other 
ships where persecution raged and was permitted, and 
where public religious service, though not absolutely pro- 
hibited, was so encompassed with difficulties as to make 
its continuance a painful effort. The number of conver- 
sions on board this ship was not large. Only a few were 
induced to join the original thirteen with which the ser- 
vice commenced in Boston, in June, 1859. So trying 
was this felt to be, that some of the brethren almost 
wished for some opposition, to break in upon the even 
tenor of their way. 

The effect of the temperance meeting was encouraging. 
Over sixty signed the pledge of total abstinence, and 
such was the impression made on that subject, that when 
the crew were allowed to go on shore in Madeira, with 
liberty for forty-eight hours, and a month's pay ; out of 
over three hundred men only forty showed any signs of 
intoxication. This was considered a marvel of sobriety 
for a man-of-war in those days. 

An event of importance took place in August, i860, 
which is referred to by one of the brethren thus: "We 
are happy to inform you that God has revived his work 
in our hearts lately. Brethren are drawn closer together 
in the unity of the spirit, and in the bonds of peace. 
Still we have no conversions from among the crcw. ,, 
This fact set them thinking that it might perhaps be their 
duty to colonize, and try to do good elsewhere. Two of 



VOLUNTEER MISSIONARIES. 459 

them, therefore, determined, if permission could be ob- 
tained, to leave their comfortable quarters, where every- 
thing was so enjoyable, and where the cause was so ably 
represented, and go on board some other vessel, where 
the gospel was without any living advocates among the 
crew. They prayed over the matter, and concluded 
that the idea was born of God. Learning, shortly after- 
wards, that the condition of things on board the Mystic 
was such as to invite their aid, they made the necessary 
application, which was granted, and they were transferred 
as above. 

Thus, Thomas Dwyer and Morris O'Brien, two able 
seamen, became missionaries of the cross, as truly as any 
who have ever taken their lives in their hands to go to 
the heathen. It is barely necessary to say that their 
condition and surroundings on board the Mystic were 
in perfect contrast with those of the Constellation. 
They might have been worse off, but for the captain and 
surgeon of the Mystic being men of God. They wel- 
comed these young missionaries with thankful hearts and 
with open hands. Among the crew, matters were very 
different. The announcement of this change came to 
me, first, by the way of the Constellation. One of my 
correspondents wrote to me, under date of August 13th, 
1S60: 

14 Last evening — Sabbath — all our brethren were on board the 
Niagara, and attended the prayer-meeting. It reminded us of the 
old times on board the North Carolina, to see Rev. Charles S. 
Stewart, her faithful and godly chaplain. To hear his voice, and 
to take part in the service, as we all did, was indeed a blessed 
privilege. It is evident that the Holy Spirit is moving among her 
crew, in a very remarkable manner. I believe that a great work 



460 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

will be done on board of her in winning souls for Christ. We 
Bend two of our number on hoard die Mystic to-day. They go 
as volunteer missionaries, to try and do some good among her 
crew. I learn that there are no professed Christians among the 
men. Pray with us, that the 'little leaven' may ' leaven the 
whole lump/" 

After these young men had been on board the Mystic 
about twelve days, Brother Dwyer wrote to me: 

"I shall never forget the last day on board the Constellation. 
I never before realized how much of bitterness could be mingled 
with the sorrow of parting from those we love. It was in the 
dusk of the evening when I shook hands with the last of those 
who accompanied me to this vessel ; and, a i he left me alone, my 
tongue refused to utter the last adieu. My heart sunk within 
me. It seemed as if it had ceased to beat, for a moment, and 
then it swelled again, almost to the bursting point. For a season 
I was a child again. I hid my face in my cap and wept until I 
blushed for my manhood ; I tried to command myself, but in 
vain — the weakness of my nature asserted itself in spite of my 
volition. Just then the divine word came to me, 'He that 
loveth father or mother more than me, is not worthy of me ; and 
whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me cannot be 
my disciple. 1 From that moment I was strengthened to face the 
difficulties of my position. Brother O'Brien and I came here for 
just one purpose, namely, to become missionaries of Him who 
1 us, and gave himself for us. I fell at His fe3t, and solemnly 
dedicated myself anew to that work, asking no greater blessing 
than to be the bearer of his cross after him." 

The self-sacrificing act of these young men produced a 
profound sensation throughout the whole squadron. As 
it was felt that they had undertaken a difficult task, many 
honored their zeal and bravery, who despised their re- 
in. They, themselves, went immediately to work. 
Through the kindness of the surgeon, who gave up the 



HEARTS OPENED. 46 1 

dispensary for the purpose, a meeting was established, 
of which he subsequently became the leader. The crew 
were invited to attend. 

Within a few days the Lord opened the hearts of two 
young men, as he had opened the heart of Lydia of old. 
One of these was the surgeon's steward. Both of them 
became active and earnest workers for Christ. In a few 
weeks, a third soul was added. The number was thus 
increased to seven. Monday, Wednesday and Friday of 
each week, found the chosen few assembled to invoke 
the blessing of God, on the godless crew. The lamp, 
lighted here, continued to burn with undimmed lustre 
amid the surrounding darkness, until the vessel was or- 
dered home, about a year afterwards. 

One of the converts of this vessel, whom I had never 
seen, wrote me, under date of May 6th, 1861 : 

"Dear Sir — I have received your kind messages by Brother 

D . I must say that I have often wondered what would have 

become of me. I was walking in the way of death. I know 
that hell would have been my portion if I had died before these 
Christian men came on board. I have been at sea about eight 
years, but I had never heard of such a thing as a prayer-meeting 
on board of a man-of-war. Since the meeting was established 
here, I have felt myself to be a ' new man' in Christ Jesus, my 
Lord. He has plucked me as a 'brand from the burning/ I 
am now trying to serve Him faithfully. I have his promise that 
whatsoever I ask in his name ' He will do it. ' I want to be able 
to say with Peter, ' Lord thou knowest all things — thou knowest 
that I love thee/ I can say now : 

1 Just as I am, without one plea, 
But that thy blood was shed for me, 
And that thou bidd'st me come to thee. 
O, Lamb of God, I come/ 



462 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

" Pray for me, my dear sir, that I may press forward, carrying 
1 the banner of the cross of Jesus Christ Our meetings con- 
tinue every e\ ming. I feel that the Lord Jesus is with us. We 
have one young man added to our number, and another inquir- 
ing the way." 

These devout workers of the Mystic were encouraged 
occasionally by the appearance of some new face at the 
place of gathering ; and sometimes it became, as they 
themselves testify, "the very gate of heavcn, ,, to their 
souls. In the mean time, the work on board the Constel- 
lation went on as before. In February, 1861, a brother 
wrote : 

u Your efforts to do us good have been many, and untiring ; 
tracts and books have come to us from you, in abundance during 
all the cruise. We know of the love you bear us, by your 
kindness to us, while we were yet on board of the North 
Carolina. Not yours only, but that also of your flock. Your 
aim has been to save our souls and thus to glorify the King of 
kings, who shed his precious blood for such worms as we. Your 
visit to the receiving-ship Ohio, before we left Boston, I heartily 
thank you for. It was a blessed season of refreshing to me. I 
have never forgotten it. The faithful epistles you have written to 
11- so frequently and regularly, ever since, have cheered me. 1 
enjoy the reading of them very much, and sometimes have the 
ant soul-satisfaction of weeping tears of thankfulness to 

lor putting it into your heart to show us such love, away 
offhere on this most desolate coast of Africa. I believe, verily, 
that you think more about us, than we do about ourselves. 
Your prayers for us have been heard, and have done us much 
L You know, as you say in your letter, ' that we are in the 
field of fight, while you are tarrying by the stuff/ Ah ! my dear 

: . I wish we were more actively engaged than we are, that 
your Spying might be truly applied to us. We have to struggle 
hard to hold our own. Especially is this the case, when the 



NOON PRAYER- MEETING. 463 

enemy catches us napping, and gets into the camp among us. 
Then we cry lustily to the Great Captain of our Salvation, who 
is always near ; albeit our eyes are sometimes so dimmed by the 
smoke of battle that we cannot behold him, yet he always 
delivers us, according to his gracious promise. When I consider 
the l toils and snares' through which 'we have already com?,' 
I attribute much of our present peace, to the prayers of yourself 
and church, which ascend like incense, when you present us in 
the arms of faith and love at the mercy-seat. It is pleasant to 
hear that so many seamen are turning to the Lord. ' It is His 
work, and it is marvellous in our eyes. ' " 

In June, 1861, they established, in addition to the 
other services, a noon prayer-meeting, between one and 
two bells. They found, to use their own words, " that it 
did them a power of good." The last communication 
from this ship, before she returned to the United States, 
ran thus : 

"We received your affectionate pastoral. It gives us great 
joy to hear of the work of grace among sailors in the States. We 
are all grateful to you for your kind and wise counsel, and your 
continued care for us, while we are absent from you. It is so full 
of encouragement. Be assured that you are never forgotten in 
our prayers. Our meeting still flourishes ; so that, although we 
do not see the increase we desire and pray for, we yet enjoy the 
preciousness of the promise of God to the two or three gathered 
in His name." 

U. S. STEAMER PORTSMOUTH. 

On board this vessel, some twenty of the crew in 
all were professing Christians. Twelve were members of 
our church and eight of the New York Baptist Mariners' 
church. They were reduced, however, from time to 
time, after reaching their cruising ground, by the making 



464 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

up of prize crews to man the slavers which were taken 
and sent home. One of the number, a Baptist, was 
drowned, of whom his shipmates testified, "that he wit- 
nessed a good profession up to the hour of his decease." 
The conduct of the crew in general, towards the repre- 
sentatives of the church was anything but kind. During 
the whole cruise, efforts were made to drive them fron 
their steadfastness, and it must be admitted, that in some 
instances they succeeded but too well. Some, however, 
who were drawn away by the enticements of the grog tub, 
and by the slanderous and scurrilous epithets of their 
shipmates, came back to their allegiance to Christ with 
redoubled zeal, before the cruise was over. In the face 
of all these untoward circumstances, a faithful few kept 
true to their covenant vows, and sustained the worship 
of God openly for a large part of the time of their absence, 
every night in the week. It does not speak very well 
for the officers of the ship, some of whom, at least, 
were professors of religion, and members of churches, 
that these men were compelled, during nearly the entire 
cruise, of more than two years, to worship God in the 
dark. Their meeting- place was between two guns in 
the starboard waist. Here they gathered nightly, after 
the hammocks were piped down. The leader of the 
meeting wrote me, September 24th, 1859: 

" The Starboard side has been generally quiet, but, lately, our 

e drowned in the noise made around us by the skylark- 

>f the men all along the gangway. As we arc compelled to 

ihip in the dark, we are unable to read or to sing, except such 

bave committed to memory. We have but litde 

advai re. I nm writing this letter in the fore-top I 

•. that you can sympathize with me, in die absence of better 

faciliti 



CONDUCT OF THE CREW. 465 

Nine months later, they were still holding on. They 
complain, however, that the language used toward 
them by their ungodly shipmates, was " scandalous/' 
Another brother says: " The crew seem to be embittered 
against us. " And again: " the conduct of our ship's com- 
pany would shame Sodom. " One little incident which 
occurred at San Paulo de Loanda, speaks volumes for 
the estimation in which the worship of Jehovah was 
held by those who were in authority: 

" We were engaged in divine sendee on the Sabbath morning,'' 
says the writer, 4 ' when the quarter-master reported that the 
French commodore was approaching the ship. The service was 
immediately arrested, and the buckets and capstan bars, which 
we had extemporized into seats, were hurried below as soon as 
possible, that the deck might be clear for his reception. We had 
no service therefore on that day. It afforded our enemies an 
opportunity to triumph over us, and you may be sure they made 
good use of it, in speaking evil of the truth." 

It does seem as if some men presume that Jehovah 
has no right on board a ship that the authorities are 
bound to respect. " Such conduct," as the writer says, 
"needs no comment." Notwithstanding all these dis- 
advantages, and the strong current of opposition which 
they were required to stem, they still mustered from 
seven to ten faithful ones at their daily meetings, whose 
motto was, "faint, yet pursuing ;" and who sought en- 
couragement and Christian sympathy, when feasible, 
away from home. A brother wrote me, May 5 th, 
1861 : 

" We have had several precious meetings on board the Mystic, 
in the dispensary. Last night we met on board the Constella- 
tion. The good Lord, who has promised to be ' in the midst ' 
20* 



466 11 i IV YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

when two or three arc gathered together in his name, was truly 
in, and caused our hearts to rejoice in his love. The 
Christians of the Constellation are very happy in the Lord, and 
enjoy his service.'' 

They had meetings also on board the Sumter and 
the Relief. On each of those vessels there were three 
praying men. On: was converted on board the latter, 
on her passage out from the United States. The Sara- 
toga and San Jacinto had each representatives of Christ 
among the crew. The former four, and the latter five. 
This may appear, to a worldling, to be a small matter. 
Yet these were the oases in the moral waste, having with- 
in themselves wells of living waters, springing up unto 
eternal life. 

When it is considered that the ships composing that 
squadron had crews, amounting in the aggregate to two 
thousand five hundred souls, and that there was not a 
single chaplain among them, it will be conceded that the 
few Christians dispersed through thern, these modern 
" diaspora," were so many evidences of the Divine 
mercy to the entire fleet. Had this mercy been pro- 
perly appreciated, it would have called forth continued 
thanksgiving and praise to God, from every heart in the 

ladron. On board the Saratoga, a meeting was or- 
ganized and conducted from October, i860, to January, 
1863, by four devoted men, one of whom was a member 
of our church. The paymaster was also a man of God. 
He read divine service on the Sabbath, when practicable. 
In this service he was sustained by the captain, who was 
always present. After the ship had been out over a year, 
the surgeon of the Mystic was transferred to her. He 
took charge of the evening services, and encouraged the 



TESTIMONY TO THEIR FAITHFULNESS. 467 

brethren in the good work. A few only were added 
to their number. 

Onboard the San Jacinto, no regular meeting was 
held. Of the three disciples in her crew, one only was a 
member of our church. They found that all they could 
do was to keep alive the flame of love in their own hearts. 
One of them wrote me, May 4th, 1862 : 

' 1 1 have had many trials and temptations, and as I am but a 
weak Christian, I beg the prayers of all praying brethren and 
sisters — that I may bear the Cross manfully and hold out faith- 
fully unto the end, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus, and at last 
receive the crown which he has promised to all them that love 
and serve him V 

This prayer was fully answered. He was the honored 
instrument of carrying the Saviour's banner into other 
men-of-war, and after a consistent service of thirteen 
years, died in the Lord, while under my spiritual 
care, at the Sailors' Snug Harbor, on the 30th of Decem- 
ber, 1874. 

The testimony of Christian brethren in the squadron, 
who knew whereof they affirmed, was : " The brothers 
of the San Jacinto are true to the Lord." They came 
together as opportunity would permit, to encourage each 
other in the way, to compare notes, and to worship God 
in company. The disciples from the Constellation and 
the Portsmouth interchanged visits with these brethren, 
and with those of the Sumter and Relief, as often as 
facilities for doing so were afforded, and held divine ser- 
vice with them. On these occasions, they " exhorted " and 
stimulated " each other to love and to good works." As 
in ages past, so now, and here, along the shores of this 
death-enshrouded continent, " they that feared the Lord 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

spake often one to another, and the Lord hearkened and 
heard it," and sustained them in the unequal strife. 
Doubtless "a book of remembrance " was for them 
also written, the pages of which will be resplendent 
with the names of those who so nobly sustained the cause 
of their Saviour amid the opposition of ungodly men. 

As far as I have been able to trace these men of the 
African Squadron, in their after history, I have found 
them, with but one or two exceptions, true to their cove- 
nant vows. Two of them rose from before the mast to the 
position of commanding officers under the Government ; 
one to a lieutenancy in the revenue marine service ; 
several to masters-mates, ensigns, and masters. What 
the full measure of their influence was, we may never 
know on earth. But when the records of that squadron 
come to be written for the final account, we shall hear of 
many of whom it shall be said — as of Ethiopia — in that 
day: u This man was born there." (Ps. lxxxvii. 4.) 



CHAPTER XXIII. 

U. S. SHIP HARTFORD — TRUE AS STEEL. 

U. S. steam frigate Hartford — Physical form and finish — Moral beauty — 
Choice spirits — Daily worship — Splendid officers — Captain's promise — A 
new shipmate — Thirteen converted — Chaplain not interested — A rousing 
choir — Touching scene — Hong-kong — Precious seasons — Thirty-seven 
active workers — Ships in port invited — One hundred and twenty-five 
soldiers converted — Rev. J. C. Beecher cheered — Barque Benefactor — 
Never seen in China before — Hartfords true as steel — Temporary reac- 
tion — Backsliders return — "Jerusalem crickets" — Drunkards sober — . 
Shanghae — A missionary's testimony — A beautiful sight — " Blest be the 
tie" — Revival on board H. B. M. ship Acteon — Forty sailors convert- 
ed — A godly captain — Stand by the Cross — Good for both ends of her. 

I NEVER shall forget the impression made upon my 
mind, when, in the summer of 1859, I pulled round the 
U. S. steamer Hartford, as she lay at anchor off the 
Navy Yard in Boston harbor. She was then ready for 
sea. Everything was " a-taunto." I thought she was the 
most beautiful vessel I had ever laid my eyes on. I 
gazed upon her with wonder and admiration. No sea- 
bird ever sat on the water more gracefully. Her lines 
appeared to me to be perfection itself. The mar- 
vellous symmetry of her form, the delicate tracery 
of her rigging, her taunt, lofty, well-stayed spars, 
her faultless proportions, her exquisite trim, in short 
her " tout ensemble " as a perfect model of naval archi- 
tecture, is as vividly present to my mind to-day as 

469 



4;o FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

it was then. Truly "a thing of beauty is a joy forever/' 
But the beaut\* I then admired was merely the perfec- 
tion of human ingenuity and handiwork. A still more 
delightful impression, however, than that produced by 
her external form and finish, now lingers in the chambers 
of memory. It is the sense of moral beauty — evoked by 
the reading of the records of the work of grace wrought 
upon her crew by the Holy Spirit, through the agency 
of men once unskilled in gospel themes, and unattracted 
by spritual beauty and loveliness ; men whose lives that 
same Divine Spirit had made radiant of truth by his own 
indwelling. The hands that penned some of those pre- 
cious communications are now cold in death. But the 
evidences of God's mercy to the men of the sea, through 
them, in the far-off nations they visited, and the influence 
wielded by those rude and unlettered, but serious, honest, 
and self-denying sailors, whom God had chosen to be 
witnesses for his Son, and to live lives of purity in the 
midst of abounding ungodliness, will never die. At the 
time to which I have referred, the ship had just been put 
in commission. She had a banner crew, and as noble a 
set of officers as men ever sailed with. Among them, 
some choice Christian spirits, who set examples of godli- 
ness to the ship's company, while they fully maintained 
their own ''esprit dc corps." Enrolled among the crew 
were between thirty and forty disciples of Christ, who 
had been converted on board the receiving-ship, during 
the previous winter and spring. With seventeen of 
these, I kept up a running correspondence during her 
absence of over thirty-one months in the East — a cor- 
respondence which was as refreshing to me, and as use- 
ful to my church and congregation, as it was copious and 



A NEW SHIPMATE. 47 1 

instructive. It is from their letters that this narrative is 
drawn. 

A few weeks before she left Boston, one of her seamen, 
who was destined to become prominent among her crew 
for his faithfulness to Christ, and to the souls of his fel- 
low-men, wrote me as follows : 

" My dear Friend — Through your kind instructions I have 
found that hope, which makes a dying hour an hour of joy, and 
that treasure which makes one rich and comfortable and happy 
through this life, as well as in eternity. Yes, through you, 
my dear pastor, I have been brought from darkness into God's 
own marvellous light. I am now rejoicing that I have found 
the dear Saviour, who has cleansed me from all sin. Through 
your sermon of last Sabbath, I was brought to see myself, as I 
had never done before. Glory be to God, and a thousand 
thanks to you ! I am now walking in the path of righteousness 
which you pointed out to me. I now love what I once hated, 
and hate that which I once loved. I love to read my Bible, 
and above all I find relief in praying to Jesus Christ. I am now 
striving to prove myself a faithful soldier of the cross. Thanks 
be to God that he has sent his only begotten Son into the world 
to save sinners, and that in his tender mercy he has sought out 
me, a poor miserable sinner, and has rescued me from destruc- 
tion. You have been the means of uniting me to my Saviour, 
and I promise you that I will try, with all my strength, to be 
useful in his cause. I hope he will strengthen me in my purpose. " 

The promise of this good and simple-hearted brother, 
was well redeemed. His course on board the Hartford, 
was like " the path of the just." It shone " brighter and 
brighter." The breath of slander and calumny did not 
sully his fair name. His influence, resulting from his 
devotion to his Master's work, and his practical love of 
souls, was such, that many a sailor, I doubt not, will, in 



472 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

the far-off future, rise up and call him blessed. His life 

was an illustration of the fact that, under God, the weak 
confound the mighty; "and things that are not" are 
used to bring to nought "the things that arc;" that 
no flesh may glory in the divine presence. This man 
was a member of our church, and a most faithful cor- 
mdenL He was true to the heart's core, like 
Abdiel, 

" Faithful found among the faithless." 

I cannot add, " faithful only he," for there were many- 
faithful with him, who, as the record will show, maintained 
their integrity through evil report and through good report, 
as long as they were together. As soon as the ship's com- 
pany were transferred to their own vessel, they initiated 
daily services, which were continued morning and evening, 
with occasional exceptions only, until the end of the cruise. 
of the first letters which came to me, dated June 17th, 
1859, said : 

"We held our first meeting last night. The first lieutenant 

He seems to be a religious man. I believe, if we 

to search the American Navy through, we could not find a 

r set of officers. There are two ' sweat boxes ' aboard. One 

of them is destined to become the library case, and the most of 

the men have subscribed a dollar apiece toward the purchase of a 

I library to put in it. So you see the boys appreciate the 

kindness of the officers. " 

On the 24th of June, 1859, another wrote: 

"The ship leaves Boston to-morrow. 1 have One going 
with, me, this cruise, with whom 1 never sailed before. 1 hope 
Him always with me. He has said, ' Lo ! I am with you 
alway.' n 



CAPTAIN'S PROMISE. 473 

Still another — on the same day : 

" A few of us in our watch on deck at night gather under the 
launch and pour out our hearts to God. We have splendid 
officers, and to all appearances we are going to have a good ship. 
Not a man yet, has been called ' to the mast. ' The officers 
seem to be astonished at the good conduct of the men, and they 
are giving us good treatment. The captain says, he begins the 
cruise as he means to end it ; and that, if we behave ourselves 
as we are now doing, he will do all in his power to make us 
comfortable and give us all the privileges he can/' 

This letter contains the statement that there were among 
the crew twenty-seven professors of religion : thirteen 
members of our church, six Baptist, two connected 
with other denominations, and six who have no 
church connection. He adds : " We have had our 
meetings four or five times in the ' fore passage/ We are 
doing the best we can, and I do not hesitate to say that 
God is with us, and is leading us, as a tender Shepherd, 
** beside the still waters." 

On the 28th they sailed for Madeira. From there I 
received a letter dated July 5th, stating: 

" We have our meetings for prayer twice a day, every morning 
and evening, and a sermon from the chaplain on Sunday. Never 
in my life did I see such attention to religion among sailors. It 
would do your heart good to look upon three hundred seamen, all 
attending, I am happy to say, with the commodore at their head. 
Your letter telling me to live close to God in prayer, I received 
just before we left. I thank you for your interest in us. Prayer 
is my greatest enjoyment. J. N. " 

From the Mauritius, September 22nd, a Swede wrote 
me : 



474 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

r — You will rejoice to hear that the work of the 
Lord is pi with us Our meetings arc held every even- 

ing, continuing sometimes two hours, from four to eight bells. 
The Lord is doing a great work among us. In the whole course 
of my life I never saw anything like it. I never knew what 
sure was, until I found the Lord, who brought me out of 
darkness into light I am truly happy in the service of God, 
and hope 1 may never even look back. I thank you for your 
kind instruction. I can only pray for you, that God will pay 
you in the great day of account. J. W." 

Another brother states : 

1 ' The port watch meet one evening, and the starboard watch 
the next. The fore-passage is rather small for us all, but it is 
large enough to crowd in both watches, when ship's duty will 
allow both to meet together. We are careful never to interfere 
with the discipline of the ship. Our hearts are sorrowful, if any- 
thing interferes with our gathering. It is the place where we find 
comfort and pleasure. 1 often see men weeping over their sins. 
A good work is going on. The carpenter, who is a man of God, 
has taken the lead of our meetings. He is striving, with the help 
i 1. to point sinners to ' the Lamb of God that taketh away 
the sin of the world.' Thirteen souls have been added to our 
number. Five more are serving God in secret, and a great many 
others are seriously troubled about their salvation. We are 
ing that God will open the eyes of many more. Some even- 
lately, reminded me of the 27th of April on board the ' Old 
North,' th u bid us farewell. That scene is graven in my 

L I can never forget how you stood weeping, and imploring 
I upon us all. Our officers as well as the men, 
►mmodore, show their reverence for divine worship 
by their presence at our meetings. The captain says he never 
inything like it. The men on the Sabbath, are seen 
ling the Bible or Testament, or other 
Our worship is never disturbed. I am sorry to say 



CHAPLAIN NOT INTERESTED. 475 

that our chaplain takes very little interest in our spiritual welfare. 
He has a prayer every morning, and a sermon every Sunday ; 
but he never comes down to our meeting, not even to our Sun- 
day afternoon prayer- meeting. You may judge, by this, how 
much he interests himself in us. The carpenter, however, is a 
faithful leader. 

" Dear pastor, if you had been with us yesterday, you would 
have been glad. At divine service, by the captain's orders, the 
brethren all sat together, and formed a choir. The ship rang 
with songs of redeeming grace, and praise to the Lamb. We 
arose one after another, in the presence of our officers and ship- 
mates, and testified to what Christ had done for us, and what he 
is willing to do for them, if they would only forsake their evil 
ways and thoughts, and come to Him. Five of our officers were 
weeping, and many of the men covered their faces with their caps 
to hide their tears. The commodore was heard to say that he 
never witnessed such a touching scene in his life. It was a 
novel sight to see sailors in tears, imploring their shipmates to 
flee from the wrath to come. Pray for us, that the whole lump 
may be leavened.'' 

One hundred and thirty-six days after leaving Boston, 
she arrived at Hong-Kong, via Mauritius and Singapore, 
without death or accident of any kind. 

" But, best of all," says my correspondent, on the 13th of No- 
vember, 1859, " ' J esus of Nazareth is passing by. ' He is teaching 

us and blessing us. Mr. B and the sail maker's mate have 

become active workers in the vineyard, and are anxious to have the 
whole ship's company with them. There are thirty-seven of us now, 
in all, and I believe we are all taking an active part in the work. 
Eve^ night men are found weeping over their sins. We have 
every privilege we can wish. There is no disturbance by the 
crew, and the captain tells us that if the ' fore passage' becomes 
too small, he will find us a larger place. Our officers are 
anxious to see the word of the Lord, 'have free course and be 



476 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

glorified.' They do not labor personally with us. But wc can- 
expect them to do SO when the chaplain, whose duty it i*, 
will not lend us a helping hand." 

Later, the same brother mourns over the defection of 
ne six or seven, who, while on liberty, were tempted 
by the bottle. Some of these, however, returned, peni- 
tent, and were subsequently restored. In May, i860, 
they write again : 

1 ' We have had some precious seasons since we wrote you last. 
There have been remarkable meetings on board this ship, that I 
hope will never be forgotten. We have often seen a man-of-war's 
quarter-deck decorated for a ball, but never before, for the public 
worship of God. Invitations had b^en sent out to the different 
ships in port, to attend divine service on board the Hartford. 
tains, officers and men, from the merchant vessels, came on 
.1. The captain gave us the privilege of manning a boat, and 
ng on board other vessels, to invite men to the Marriage 
Supper of the Lamb. We have sowed the good seed, and look to 
Tor his blessing. The influence of these meetings cannot be 
sored Some ships that came into port with no religious 
'lis aboard, have gone to sea, some with two, some with 
three, and one with five souls converted. A Baptist missionary — 
an Did man — says, we have 'taught him a lesson he will not 
t. The resurrection of dead souls is like that of Lazarus, 
whom Christ called from his grave/ His little Chinese church is 
all stirred up. It is something new for them to see Christian 
is flocking to their services. The influence of this ship is not 
ined t« 1 the American vessels, but extends to the British as well ; 
liers arc moved by it. We attend a prayer-meeting 
at Mr. I Jcecher's church. God is blessing faithful 
labor, and many arc being added to the ranks of the disciples, of 
.. we trust, as shall be saved. A sergeant of the first Royals, 
a British , lately returned from the Pei-ITo, had been 

greatly blessed at Canton, where a non- commissioned officer 



REV. J. C. BEECHER CHEERED. 477 

started a prayer-meeting in the camp, and though enduring 
obloquy and contempt on account of his zeal, he held on, and 
after rive months, one hundred and twenty-five of his comrades 
were converted. Rev. Mr. Beecher says, he * has been praying 
for this condition of things for the last four years/ But now his 
eyes see the blessing of the Lord. " 

By way of corroborating the above, and looking at the 
work from the standpoint of the missionaries, I will here 
insert a letter written to me by Rev. J. C. Beecher, at 
that time chaplain to seamen at Hong-Kong, and dated 
May 2nd, i860: 

"Dear Brother — I am pressed for time wherein to answer 
your kind letter, received per Benefactor, yet cannot put off com- 
municating that which I know will fill your soul with joy. The 
Benefactor brought me good, sturdy helpers, and the end is not 
yet. I was absent at Wampoa when Captain Corning arrived, 
having gone thither to see about re-building the Bethel destroy- 
ed by the Chinese three years ago. On my return, after three 
days, I found that there were evidences of a reviving among 
us, no where more needed than in my own tired soul. We 
found strong helpers in your friends on board the Hartford. 
They took hold manfully with us. The interest increased. 
Captain Corning and his excellent chief-officer were instant in 
labor and prayer. Three or four English captains, praying men, 
came into the harbor, and, for once, I felt that 1 was not alone. 
Truly the last three weeks have been bright and joyous. I 
think that fourteen staunch sailors have come out upon the 
Lord's side, and the interest still continues. Such a state of 
things has never been known in China before. I am not idle ; 
I have prayed for this, through storm and sunshine, for four 
years, and just as my faith had begun to flag, the blessing came. 
I tell you, dear brother, when we get ships that are prayer-laden, 
traversing the seas, we may begin to look out for revivals. One 
ship thus furnished, sails to-morrow for San Francisco. Two 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

praying men, 'the first fruits ' of our harvest, go in her; and 
ther, I trust, will be added to them. I have just been on 
board to break the ice for them. God grant that the little leaven, 
may ! aven the whole lump. 

"Your Hartford friends witnessed a good profession at the 
meeting <>u Wednesday evening, on board the Benefactor, and 
the Sabbath and Thursday evening meetings at my chapel. They 
are true as steel, and believe me, they speak nobly for Christ. 
They are a blessing to their ship, and a blessing to the harbor. 
Next week there will be a sad scattering, and God only knoweth 
whether there will be found any helpers in my work. Yet even 
if all alone, I shall work away with revived hope and new energy. 
It is a trying field ; everything is shifting, shifting continually. 
Pray for us, that change may bring as well as take away helping 
hands. " 

In August, the brethren wrote me, sending joyful tid- 
ings. The men who had temporarily strayed away, 
allured by temptation, came back to the fold, sorrowing 
after a godly sort ; relating their bitter experience, and 
telling of the anguish which they had endured in their 
nee from Christ, and from their brethren in the 
Lord ; and promising increased watchfulness and faithful- 
ness in the future. 

In December, they were still pressing toward the goal 
for the prize, scattering the light of the Gospel, as they 
moved up and down the coast among the heathen. 
Their letters express much gratitude for correspondence, 
ks '<m(\ other reading matter, which I had sent them. 
These, they felt, were so many evidences that they were 
not forgotten, and so many links binding them to the 
church and brotherhood at home. 

The opening of the year 1861 brought with it a tern- 
ary reaction. A few of the weaker ones, who had 



"JERUSALEM CRICKETS." 479 

been ashore on liberty, had yielded to the tempter, there- 
by bringing reproach upon the cause, and interfering 
somewhat with the privilege which had been accorded to 
the crew, of visiting the Bethel, or attending service on 
board other vessels. It also thinned the attendance on 
their evening meetings at home. The " Jerusalem crick- 
ets," as the ungodly called them by way of reproach, 
were therefore, for a season under a cloud. It was only 
for a short time, however ; as in February they report a 
renewing of the interest, and men still coming to Christ. 
In March an occasional correspondent, a sort of " looker- 
on in Venice," who hovered around the confines of the 
Christian territory, instead of nestling down among the 
believers, wrote me from his own point of view, saying: 

"The most profligate men and the greatest drunkards in the 
ship, are becoming sober, steady, and orderly men ; — do not 
break their liberty, nor fight, nor do anything that is discredit- 
able to themselves or to the country they serve. There are some, 
now, who have been habitual drunkards for years, who have given 
up drinking entirely ; not because it was an injury to their consti- 
tutions and degraded them, but, first, from the force of example — 
and then from conviction that it was of no benefit to them. Out 
of three hundred who went ashore on liberty last week, only two 
were brought aboard intoxicated. Now, my friend, do you not 
think that this is a great change for the better — and a great bless- 
ing to our craft ? The people ashore say that we are the best 
behaved set of men that have ever been out on this coast. All 
praise to God for it I" 

The conclusion of the writer is : " There is no place 
under the arch of heaven where a man benefits himself 
so much for both worlds, as in a vessel where honesty 
and sobriety are well thought of" I may add, further, 
at this point, an outside testimony, from a young sea- 



4S0 FIFTV YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

officer at Shanghae, where the Hartford was laying in 
the spring of 1861. He had been converted and was 

laboring at his own charges, as a missionary among 

sailors. He wrote, in May : 

" We have had the Hartford here, and her little church stand; 
firm. 1 never met with men whom 1 loved so much. One of 
the brethren of II. B. M. ship Acteon, also, often visits us. You 
have heard probably of the good work going on, on board of her. 
I have also met with some Christian men on board of merchant 
vessels, but they are few. The Bethel here is well attended, both 
from ship and shore. J. T." 

In June, i86i,my correspondent, after the usual as- 
surance that the meetings were carried on with the ac- 
customed regularity, and were doing well, expresses his 
sorrow at the smallness of the Christian band, as com- 
pared with the number of the entire crew. Saying : 

"We have been prayerfully sowing the good seed, for the last 

f two t how few and easily counted are we who are walking 

in the narrow way, while so many are travelling the broad way. 

xtheless we are thankful to God that he has a few reprcsenta- 

here, and that he keeps us together and comforts and blesses 

rith his love. We know that whenever we meet, ' He is in 

the midst/ n 

I le adds : ■ ' We have been ashore to the Bethel prayer-meeting. 

1 precious pri We were delighted to see the British 

nd men, crowding into the house of God. It 

autiful sight I A large number of them arc Christians. 

:<1 of the* Hartford's, and when they met us, they 

co -dial grasp of die hand, and made every effort to 

. and to accommodate us while we weie ashore. 

Well may we sing : 



" BLEST BE THE TIE/' 481 

1 Blest be the tie that binds 

Our hearts in Christian love, 
The fellowship of kindred minds 
Is like to that above.' 

"The English sloop-of-war Acteon is here. There is quite a 
revival on board of her. About forty of her crew are converted 
men. When we met with them, and worshipped together, it 
reminded us of that memorable farewell meeting on board the 
North Carolina, when w r e parted from you, and your church 
members. Many hearts were melted down, tears of joy were 
shed ; prayers, heart prayers, went up that night, such as Paul 
says, 'cannot be uttered/ except in groans and sighs and tears. 

"These Acteons are taking hold of God's cause manfully, 
despising the shame ; they stand by the cross, accepting reproach 
for Christ's sake. They have no fear of man before their eyes; 
they fear God only. Their captain is a noble Christian man ; he 
leads them and defends them. He will allow no man to inter- 
fere with his believing men or disturb them in their worship. In 
Christ he is their brother. He calls them into his cabin in the 
evening, and takes active part with them in the service of God. 
He is proud of the behavior of his whole crew ; he says he can 
trust them to go ashore anywhere, because instead of going to 
the grog-shop or to houses of ill-repute, he finds them among 
the missionaries.'' 

How different the condition of things everywhere when 
a good example is set by the officers. The old proverb, 
14 Like priest, like people," may be given a nautical appli- 
cation and form, because, "Like captain, like crew," is 
equally true, and as a proverb will wear as long. The law 
of kindness never fails to work out its own ends. Chris- 
tian sympathy is as potent to-day, as when Christ walked 
the waters of Galilee to save his affrighted disciples. The 
power of love is as efficacious in the cabin of a merchant- 
21 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

man or on the quarter-deck of a man-of-war at sea, as 
ever it was, in hut, or palace, or pulpit ashore. There is 
an impression abroad, that while it is possible for a sailor 
to carry Christ with him into the forecastle, it is utterly 
impracticable for the cabin to attempt to govern a crew 
on Christian principles, on boaid a ship at sea. It ought 
to be stated, however, that this is not the testimony of 
pious ship captains, who have given the matter a fair 
trial. There are hundreds of Christians who would give 
an unqualified denial to any such statement, if made in 
their hearing. 

One who loves God and his fellow- men, and who has 
learned the all-important lesson of self-control, will, other 
things being equal,find but little difficulty in governing his 
crew. Seamen know when they are well treated as well 
as other men, and can usually stand as much kindness as 
an officer is disposed to give. I have heard many praise 
the good discipline and good usage of ships in which they 
f have sailed under religious ship masters. The testimony 

of one of these, " I'll tell as 'twas told to me:" 

' k I made several voyages with Capt. M out of New York, 

>re the mast and abaft it. He conducted divine service, wind 

and weather permitting, at sea, and in port, every Sabbath, and 

prayer- meetings every Thursday evening. He always read the 

Sacred Scriptures, and explained them to us. He was blessed in 

this work too, in the salvation of souls. From two to three, to 

i »r twelve were converted every voyage. He had his wife and 

children with him. lie gave us watch and watch, good 

fc , good grul) and plenty of it. lie did no work on the 

lath except to reduce or trim sails. The decks were washed 

and the house on deck cleansed on Saturday afternoons. The 

n. when they shipped, were informed diat there could he 

do swearing, quarreling, noi fighting allowed, as they were in a 



A GODLY CAPTAIN. 483 

Christian ship. As a result of that kind of treatment, the men 
were contented, and worked willingly. They jumped, the 
moment they were called, night or day. It was not at all an 
unfrequent thing for men to make two or three voyages with him 
in succession. I myself was so pleased and contented that I 
sailed with him for ten years. " 

It would not be difficult to multiply such testimony, 
if necessary. I have known many captains of whom the 
same may be said, simply because they governed them- 
selves on the same principles as they governed their men. 
Other illustrations of this subject will be found in these 
pages in the testimonies of seamen who have been ben- 
efited by Christian treatment and allured by a life of 
love. Notably is this true with regard to the condition 
of things on board H. B. M. ship Acteon, and the Pow- 
hatan, Congress, Constellation, Hartford, Niagara and 
Wabash, of the U. S. Navy. It is true also of the mer- 
chant service. Such devoted Christian workers as Cap- 
tains Bartlett, Brewer, Corning, Elliott, Gelston, Hawks, 
Holmes, Leisgang, Proal, Whitton and a host of others, 
out of New York, Boston, and Philadelphia, never 
needed to wait for men, where their Christian kindness 
and virtues were known. The very name of the vessels 
they commanded have become household words in the 
families of seamen who experienced their benevolent 
control. Religion is good at both ends of the ship. 

To return to the Hartford. It is only necessary to say, 
in conclusion, concerning the blessed work carried for- 
ward by her devout men, that the last communication 
to me from her, while in the Chinese waters, was dated 
July 23rd, 1861, and stated : 

"We are, I trust, all striving to walk humbly before God, 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

acknowledging our weakness and our short comings, but still 
trusting in his abounding mercy. Of a truth we can say, 'lie 
has never forsaken us.' hut out of every trouble he has delivered 
US and brought us off in triumph, even in the face of the foe. 
Our meetings are still continued every evening/' 

Five months later these dear brethren were separated 
by the paving off of the ship in Philadelphia, in Decem- 
ber. Having witnessed a good profession by holding 
forth the word of life during her whole cruise, and having 
left substantial evidence of their faithfulness on the Pagan 
coasts of the so-called " Celestials/' they were distributed 
to other ships and other countries, under the guidance 
of their great Leader, who has commanded, " Be thou 
faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life. 



CHAPTER XXIV. 

U. S. GOLD LACE AND BLUE FLANNEL. 

A Gospel ship — Captain William L. Hudson- -A man of God — Submarine 
cable— Laid in the spirit of prayer — Preach on board — Fishers of men- 
Conversions — I do love him — Zealous chaplain — Japanese ambassadors 
— Scenes unprecedented — Officers and men converted — Kanagawa — 
Visit to missionaries — Prayer and praise — Hong-kong — Visit Mr. Beech- 
er's prayer-meeting — Scenes in Cape Town — Chaplain's account of re- 
vival — Gold lace and blue flannel — A check experienced — On the block- 
ade — Conversions still occurring — Model ship — Commodore McKean — 
His promotion — Devotion of his men — Admiral asking prayers of his 
men — Influence of Mariners' church — Nucleus of a church — Overruling 
providence — Place of meeting — Its advantages — Remarkable results — 
Seventy converts — Fifteen officers — Joy in the presence of the Angels. 

Of all the vessels of the United States Navy with 
which I was in correspondence, the steam frigate 
Niagara, from whatever point of view she is contemplat- 
ed, stands forth easily pre-eminent. She might well be 
termed a Gospel-ship. Her history, from the time her 
keel was laid, will justify the designation. While in the 
process of construction, she was under the supervision 
of Captain William L. Hudson, the commandant of the 
Brooklyn Navy Yard. He was also her first comman- 
der. Being a man of prayer, of strong faith, scrupu- 
lously honest in His convictions, careful to maintain the 
sacredness of the Sabbath, and to live in such a manner 
as to commend the religion of Jesus Christ to his 

485 



4&U FlirV YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

icers and crew, and being, withal, as chivalrous in duty 
as he was capable and experienced, he was, of all the 
naval officers of his day, especially fitted for the delicate, 
important and difficult task assigned him, by the United 
States government, when ordered to proceed to England 
and take part in the laying' of the first Atlantic sub- 
marine telegraph cable in the world. 

It was meet that an enterprise of such world-wide im- 
portance should be committed to none other than a man 
of God — one who, having accomplished the marvellous 
achievement, should ascribe the glory to Jehovah alone. 
That wonderful work we know was begun, if it was 
not originally conceived, in a spirit of prayer and hum- 
ble dependence upon God, on both sides of the ocean. 
Before the departure of the fleet from London, special 
prayer was offered for its success. Prayer preceded the 
sailing of the Expedition from Valentia Bay. Daily 
prayer went up to heaven from both ship and shore dur- 
ing the eight days of the paying out of the cable. Prayer 
and praise crowned the issue at its landing in Trinity 
Bay — Captain Hudson leading his crew up to the 
throne of grace in thanksgiving for the successful termi- 
nation of the work. In announcing the accomplished 
fact, the captain sent the following telegram to his fam- 
ily: 

" Trinity Bay, August 5th, fSjS. 
1 lod has hecn with us. The telegraph cable is laid without 

lent, and to Him be all the glory. Wm. L. Hudson." 

Before the Niagara sailed on this expedition, I visited 
her several times, and had religious conversation with 
many of the crew. On the 26th of February, 1858, I 
had an interview with Captain Hudson, and at his sug- 






FISHERS OF MEN. 487 

gestion supplied the men with one hundred copies of the 
Book of Common Prayer. I also placed on board two 
hundred copies of the "Sea Bird/' and thirty-two volumes 
of religious reading matter for their use. 

On the 28th, I preached to the ship's company from 
Matthew iv. 12-22 — the Saviour's command to the 
fishermen of the Sea of Galilee : " Follow me, and I 
will make you fishers of men." The audience were 
deeply interested. Many were moved to tears ; some be- 
came noble " fishers/' and laid the result of their efforts 
at the Saviour's feet. Among those who were sensibly 
affected by that sermon, was one who afterwards made 
his mark as a faithful follower of the Divine Master. 
In a letter to me after the return of the vessel, giving 
an account of his conversion, he says : 

"I have not forgotten the advice you gave us when you 
preached to us before we left New York. I have been a great 
sinner ! For the last twelve years I have been going down to 
perdition ; but I have been arrested by divine mercy, and made 
to see my evil ways. I cannot be too thankful to God for not 
cutting me down in the midst of my sins. I hope you will pray 
for me, and ask the church members to pray for me, that God 
may give me strength to walk in his way all the days of my life. 
We have daily prayer-meetings on our berth-deck, at which sin- 
ners are invited to come to God. It is conducted by a few pray- 
ing sailors I hope there will be many more before long. Our 
chaplain is a godly man ; I hope he will receive a full reward 
when he dies. If I never see you again on earth I hope to meet 
you in heaven." 

Another of her crew, who maintained the honor of 
Christ's cause during the whole of the Niagara's cruise, 
who, on leaving her, carried his religious zeal into the 



(.88 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

army and illumined the camp and bivouac with the 
brightness of his life and labors, and who did effectual 
missionary work until the close of the war, wrote me : 

" Through the mercy of God I am spared to tell you of what 
my blessed Saviour has done for me. When I was running in 
the broad road to ruin, he plucked me as a brand out of the fire. 
1 can never praise him enough ; yet I do want to praise him 
more now than ever, for his goodness and mercy to me. I was 
Binning with a high hand, and an outstretched arm. But now I 
am [Maying to Him to bless and strengthen me and to guide me 
in the narrow path that leadeth unto life. Oh, sir, I do love 
him ! He is my best Friend ; he is always with me. I would 
not part with the blessed hope he has kindled in my heaitfor the 
whole world." 

After being out of commission twenty-one months, 
she was ordered to receive the Japanese ambassadors and 
suite and to bear them to their Island home in the East. 
The incidents of her voyage; the work of grace which 
characterized it ; the impression made upon her illus- 
trious passengers, who witnessed the scenes enacted daily 
and marked the effect of the religion of Christ on the 
rough natures of the men; the devotion and missionary 
zeal of the brethren ; the good conduct of the crew gen- 
erally ; the piety, humility and nobleness of character 
displayed by her captain and converted officers ; the 
effect of the ship's visit on the missionaries in Japan, 
their intercourse with the men of God who so faithfully 
represented the power of divine grace in that heathen 
land ; and withal, the earnest and faithful labors, and 
intense sympathy with the work of her noble and devoted 
chaplain, Rev. Charles S. Stewart — all these, if given in 
detail, would make a most readable volume. But I must 



SCENES UNPRECEDENTED. 4S9 

content myself at this time in given the merest summary ; 
and cannot do this better than by submitting parts of 
the correspondence of her zealous seamen and her godly 
chaplain, who kept me informed of the progress of the 
good work. 

On the homeward passage, one who had temporarily 
recoiled before the powers of darkness, was restored, 
and as in many other instances, the return of the prodigal 
was followed by scenes of joy among the brethren almost 
unprecedented in the history of the work. It was also 
the means, under God, of an awakening among the un- 
godly, and resulted in a revival of wonderful power, such 
as we have no record of in the past, among men on the 
sea. I will let the witnesses of those nightly scenes tell 
their own story ; selecting two or three only, out of the 
many ; although I believe every word of each correspon- 
dent would be read with eagerness and delight. The 
restored one wrote me on April 17th, 1861, at sea, as 
follows : 

" My Dear Brother in Jesus — I am glad, yea, happy, that by 
the boundless and infinite goodness of our long-suffering and 
indulgent God, I can again call you my brother. God loves me, 
even me. He has forgiven me. His blessed spirit again bears 
witness with my spirit that I am his child. Praise the Lord for 
his forgiving mercy and love. I have great and ( glad tidings ' to 
give you. God, by his Holy Spirit, in this ship, has been and is 
still answering the prayers of his Church. Since we left Aden, the 
work of grace has been in progress among the ward-room officers 
as well as among the men. The sailing-master has boldly 
declared himself on the Lord's side. He spoke of his pardoned 
sins, and plead with others to fly for safety to Jesus. One of the 
lieutenants, the young surgeon, the chief-engineer and three 
assistants, two of the midshipmen, and the carpenter, have all 

21* 



490 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS, 

avowed tb - believers, and most of them take part openly 

in our meetings. Among the men the workings of the Divine 
Spirit have been wonderful indeed. Forty-three of them have 
been brought to Christ. Ten others have expressed their desire 
for prayer in their behalf. Captains of the forecastle and the tops, 
firemen and marines are included. 

• In all parts of the ship, in every mess nearly, Jesus is loved. 
Many speak of the danger of delay. The sudden death of one 
of our firemen, on whose head a block from aloft fell, and killed 
him, has been used of God to startle others and awake them to 
the necessity of coming to God at once/' 

Another, himself a new convert, a few days later wrote 
me : 

u Your precious and welcome letters, by the Vandalia, were 
received at the Cape of Good Hope. My dear sir, I never knew 
what happiness was untd I began to serve the Lord. After we 
landed our passengers, the Ambassadors, at Jeddo, we returned 
to Yokohama where we were granted twenty-four hours liberty 
ashore. I never enjoyed myself so much in my life. We attended 
a prayer- meeting at the house of one of the missionaries. In 
Hong-Kong, our next port, we visited Mr. Beecher's prayer-meet- 
in _r, and had also two delightful religious services with our 
Christian brethren of the Hartford. They were indeed blessed 
We went from Hong-Kong to Singapore, and thence 
to Aden, with Mr. Ward, our minister to China, on his wav 
home to the United States. 

"The death of one of our firemen has led me to give thanks 
to Gi i 1 anew for spiring my life. His mercy and loving-kind 

r sinner as I have been and am, is very gr 

I can truly say that Christ is precious to my soul. His name ., 

1 Our prayer-meetings are a source of real inexpressible 

hap] tul. The voice of God has spoken again to us 

by the death of two men. invalided from the Hartford, whom we 

bringing home, lie says to us : ' Be ye also ready I' I am 



SCENES IN CAPE TOWN. 49 1 

determined, by the grace of God, to be always ready, to live a 
Christian life daily, so that if I am called, the language of my soul 
will be, 'Thy will be done/ 

1 'While in the Cape of Good Hope, we had a delightfully 
pleasant time. We were ashore on liberty for forty-eight hours, 
which we spent in the company of the Christian people of Cape 
Town. Rev. Mr. Thompson invited us to his house to tea ; 
thence, accompanied by our chaplain, we went to his church and 
testified for Christ. It was none other than the gate of heaven 
to our souls. The second night we had another meeting in the 
same church, which we conducted ourselves, after our manner on 
board the ship. The next day our liberty was up ; but as it was 
blowing a gale of wind we could have no communication with 
the ship, and were consequently compelled to spend the night 
ashore. This we improved by holding a prayer-meeting in the 
hotel. It was a profitable season. Oh, my dear pastor, the 
Niagara's crew have left a name behind them that will not be for- 
gotten for years. The governor, Sir George Grey, has been 
heard to say, and many of the people too, that there never was a 
man-of-war's crew, American or English, on liberty, ashore in 
Town, who behaved so remarkably well, as our men. Over two 
thousand persons visited the ship while we lay there — as one of 
the wonders of the world. No wonder, for the Niagara is truly a 
revival ship." 

Another, who was converted on board the North Car- 
olina, with many more, in 1 860, and who was one of the 
most prominent of the leaders of the meetings, in giving 
an account of their Cape Town visit, presents us with 
some details not mentioned in the above extracts. He 
says : 

" The captain gave me permission to make up a list of the 
Christian brethren who desired to go ashore. I took the names 
of twenty-five. Before going ashore, we bad secured a house in 
which we could have accommodations for reading, sleeping, 



.\J2 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

quiet, etc. We were invited to the house of the minister, who 
received OS with Christian friendship. After taking tea with 
him and his family, we accompanied them to his church, where 
we availed ourselves of the opportunity to speak on Africa's shore 
a word of praise to our Saviour. Several of our brethren were 
able with holy boldness to testify of the goodness of the Lord. 
The Christian people looked on with interest and astonishment ; 
and some said, ' It was never seen on this wise before in Cape 
Town/ This, dear brother, is the Lord's doing, and it is marvel- 
lous in our eyes. Our friends opened their houses for us. 

"The Tuesday evening meeting was well attended by our 
shore friends, who were interested to see the service conducted 
as we are accustomed to do on board our own ship. Wednesday 
evening we held our meeting in the hotel, within earshot of the 
enemies' camp. On Thursday morning we all reported on board, 
in good order." 

What occurred on the passage home from the Cape 
to Boston, may be best communicated in the words of 
their chaplain and spiritual guide. I will quote from his 
letter, as, from his standpoint, the intelligence has a pe- 
culiar preciousness, and he speaks — as no one else could 
so well — of the faithfulness of the devoted men who la- 
bored with him in the gospel, and without whose exem- 
plary zeal and active effort, the record of the ship's in- 
fluence and the progress of divine grace among her 
officers and crew, must have been less cheering than it 
is. He writes while in the Gulf Stream, under date of 
April 2 1 st, 1861: 

"My Dear Jones — I wrote to you from Aden, a letter, which 
von have received. You will rejoice to hear that shortly 

it wis written, S was recovered, by the grace of God, from 

the snare of the adversary, into which he had fallen, as ieported 
by m He [litent and very humble ; has made a full 



GOLD LACE AND BLUE FLANNEL. 493 

and public confession of the guilt and sin of his fall, before both 
the brethren and the crew. He is again hopeful and active in 
our meetings and on deck, among his shipmates. 

" You will rejoice to know that the prayers which have so long 
followed this ship, have been heard, and that the work of grace 
which began to be manifest among us in the case of individuals 
here and there on board, more than six months ago, has gradually 
and quietly increased in power and effect ; that, almost without 
being aware of it, we were in the midst of a revival. The whole 
number of conversions on board previous to our arrival at Cape 
Town, two months ago, amounted only to some twenty ; about 
thirty have been added since we left Table Bay, six weeks ago, 
including eight officers of all ranks, from lieutenants down ; and 
the scenes which you and I witnessed together two years ago— on 
board the North Carolina, are to be seen nightly now on board 
the Niagara, except that here the gold lace mingles in greater 
abundance with the blue flannel at the feet of Jesus than was 
ever the case before. The night before last, eleven officers, 
avowedly on the Lord's side, were at the meeting, and fifteen 
foremast hands confessed Christ before the ship's company. Last 
night three others avouched the Lord to be their God. 

4 'The meeting this evening surpassed all previous ones in feel- 
ing and interest. It reminded me of that on board the North 
Carolina the night before the draft left for Boston, on the 27th of 
April, 1859. Captain McKean made the closing address, as you 
did then. It was excellent, though he was choked with emotion, 
and could with difficulty restrain his tears. The tears of others 
among the brethren flowed freely ; while on all sides, clustered 
like bees around the praying group, the crew gazed with wonder 
at the novel sight of the commander of one of the first men-of-war 
afloat, confessing Christ as his Lord and Saviour before a com- 
piny of his officers and men, followers of the same Divine 
Master — and, in effect, preaching the gospel to the unconverted 
under his command assembled around him. We have been 
greatly blessed, for which you will give praise. Monro is a true 



494 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

donaiy ; Wilson, a 'gem of purest ray serene/ Jcnkinson 
xvent in spirit, gifted in prayer, and faithfully serving the 
L" 

The three men mentioned were members of our Mar- 
iners' church, and have justified by their subsequent lives 
the testimony of their devoted chaplain — whose coun- 
sels and instructions they shared, and whose hand they 
so nobly upheld during the entire cruise of the Niagara. 

The description above given of the nightly scenes on 
board this truly privileged vessel, presenting, as it does, 
the testimony of both ends of the ship — forward and 
aft, will convey to the reader a graphic delineation of a 
condition of things at sea, which, though rare in our day, 
is yet to become more general, when in accordance with 
the prediction of the Word, the spirit of God will dispel 
with his own effulgent presence the moral darkness 
which has so long shrouded, and which still, to a large 
extent, reigns on the deep, by the conversion of " the 
abundance of the sea." 

I quote further, a letter from the same pen, written 
while blockading the mouths of the Mississippi, in which 
subsequent events are recorded. It is dated November 
2nd, 1 86 1 : 

" Though within the distance of a week by steamer from New 

have been twice without a mail, a letter or a newspaper, 

ix weeks in succession ; and I have no recollection of having 

ever felt even in my missionary life at the Sandwich Islands — then, 

ultima thole of the world — so entirely cut off from the sweet 

charities of life. Still, I have seldom been more content, or 

more truly happy; chiefly from the conviction thai I am at the 

post oi 'duty, with evidences past and present of a work around 

me to be accomplished by the ministry of the gospel through the 

power of the Holy Spirit. 



CONVERSIONS STILL OCCURRING. 495 

" The Niagara, as you may recollect, arrived from Japan in 
April, in a state of much religious interest. Some fifty of the 
ship's company, embracing officers as well as seamen, had been 
hopefully converted during her absence ; the greater number 
within a few weeks just preceding. The influences leading to 
this happy result were still prevailing ; but were, almost unavoid- 
ably, stayed by the circumstances awaiting our arrival. No 
intelligence from the United States had reached us for many 
months ; we were ignorant of the secession of any of them, and 
little prepared for the shock of the first words reaching us from a 
pilot boat as she swept under our stern : ' The Union is gone ! 
We are at war ! Fighting has begun f Nearly half the com- 
missioned officers of the Niagara refused to take the oath of 
allegiance required from them, and abruptly left the ship as 
secessionists, the same day. In place of leave to the rest to visit 
their friends and homes, and the discharge of all hands to the 
enjoyment of liberty, as had been confidently looked for, after a 
year of almost uninterrupted confinement on board ship, in a 
voyage of more than forty thousand miles, we had orders for 
immediate service at sea again, and were hurried off on our 
present duty. 

"That the good work in progress on board should have 
suffered a check by such disturbing causes, was not a surprise. 
For a time this was the fact, so far as regarded new cases of con- 
version ; but the faith, hope and spirit of prayer of those already 
on the Lord's side continued in lively exercise ; and at the end 
of a few weeks, the presence of the Spirit was again manifested in 
the conviction and inquiring state of one and another here and 
there, among both officers and crew. Flopcful conversions have 
again occurred up to the present time, and within the last two 
months twelve more have been added to the number of professed 
disciples, and have openly joined our band of praying men. 
Among these are three young officers, graduates of the Naval 
Academy, of special interest and promise. One, the son of a 
distinguished general officer in the army, now in active service ; 



496 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

another a grandson of one of the most celebrated divines and 
theologians of the present century, in our country ; and the third 
a descendant of the well-known and honored Presidents of the 
College of New Jersey, Dr. Stanhope Smith and Dr. Witherspoon. 
These three complete the number of twelve officers of the Niagara, 
who, within the year past, have publicly cast their lot in this 
regard, with Christian sailors on board. It is certainly an 
interesting sign of the times that there are found among the most 
promising young officers of our service, those, who not only have 
the independence and decision of character to avow themselves to 
their messmates and fellow-officers, to be followers of the blessed 
Saviour, but also unhesitatingly to identify themselves as such at 
our nightly prayer and conference meetings, with the humblest 
sailor under them who loves the Lord, as members of a common 
bn >therhood. With a commander-in-chief, deeply interested in 
the best good of all under him — himself an humble and consistent 
follower of Christ ; with a fine set of officers generally, so many 
of them of the same mind as our chief, and so large a number 
of professed Christians and converts among the crew, the com- 
bined influence on all on board has been most marked and most 
salutary. 

" We have a happy ship ; one that is a model in good disci- 
pline, good order, and consequently in contentment. The only 
element of dissatisfaction is the unavoidable inactivity of our 
nt service. The whole ship's company are longing for some 
opportunity of exhibiting their devotion to their flag and to the 
Union, and in regard to the conflict in which we are engaged, 
restive as a war-horse under the sound of the trumpet, and 
nal for battle. 

The devotion to Commodore McKean is without bounds. In 
all my sea service of many years I have never known it equalled. 
>n ever occur for the calling of volunteers by 
him, were it for the most forlorn of forlorn hopes, I doubt 
whether there is a man among them who would not spring to be 
first at his side ; or one whom he might not lead wherever he 



ADMIRAL ASKING PRAYERS OF HIS MEN. 497 

would. His promotion as admiral — for such truly is his rank, 
though our democratic legislators very fastidiously object to th? 
style, and choose in its stead, the awkward and somewhat 
unmeaning epithet, ' Flag-officer ' — was a matter of great satisfac- 
tion to all hands, much more so than to himself; and the cheer 
upon cheer which spontaneously burst forth, when, without any 
previous notice, and without form, or the customary salute, a 
fact indicative of the unostentatious character of the commodore — 
the blue flag was seen to float from our masthead, told the feel- 
ings of the heart towards him whose command it proclaimed. As 
you well know, he is a man of prayer ; and during our whole 
cruise has been found night after night at our prayer and confer- 
ence meetings on the forward deck, occupying the same plank for 
a seat with the common sailor, uniting in the songs of praise and 
in the prayers of the humblest of them, and himself often leading 
us to the feet of Jesus at the throne of grace, or addressing words 
of encouragement to the professor and of exhortation and persua- 
sion to the careless and unconcerned. 

" His promotion as chief has produced no change in this 
respect. He was in his accustomed place the first night after 
securing it ; and I know not when I have been more touched 
than when, at the close of the meeting, he motioned me to with- 
hold the usual benediction for a moment, that he might, as I 
soon discovered, solicit the prayers of his brother sailors and fel- 
low Christians, lowly as their position in comparison with his is, 
that he might have grace and strength from the hearer of prayer, 
to discharge the responsibilities newly devolved upon him, to the 
glory of God, and the best interests and honor of his country. 
Such proofs of independence of character, and just indifference to 
the views or opinions of men of the world in Christian profession, 
are evidences of true nobility of heart and mind. I could not 
but be reminded by this incident of similar instances of Christian 
decision and piety recorded of the gallant soldier and devoted 
Christian, Havelock. Yours truly." 

At the termination of the cruise, in a letter to one of 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

the officers of our church, he presents a historic sum- 
mary ; which, while it supplements, will also add to 
the interest of the preceding communication. It is 
written from New York, dated July 29th, 1862, and 
runs thus : 

u Dear St'r — The cruise of two years recently completed by the 
V. S. steam frigate Niagara, was characterized by incidents of a 
religious nature worthy of permanent record in the archives of the 
Tort Society ; more especially, from the fact that among the 
instrumentalities, which through the grace of God tended to 
issues so interesting, and so marked in the spiritual statistics of 
the sea, are to be reckoned conspicuously, the consistent Christian 
deportment, the active piety, and the enduring faith and love of 
some of the crew, who hold membership and communion in the 
Mariners' church, organized and sustained in this city by the 
Port Society. Under this impression, I address to you a brief 
letter on the subject. 

" The Niagara is, in herself, one of the finest vessels ever con- 
structed. Till recently, if not still, she is the largest man-of-war 
afloat, a model of naval architecture, of symmetry, strength, and 

tntic proportions : and unsurpassed in her appointments of 
comfort and beauty for the accommodation of a ship's company 
of some six hundred persons. The selection of this vessel by the 

rnment, in i860, to be the bearer to their distant homes of 
the embassy from Japan, the guests of the nation, and the objects 
of absorbing interest at the time, brought her afresh before the 
public, and made her, in connection with the mission to which 
she was appointed, an object both of attraction and hope to the 

stian ( ommunity at large. 

"Circumstances in her very outfit, seemed to foreshadow a pur- 

in the providence of God and of grace to bless. A profess- 

md demonstratively Christian man, Commodore McKeari, 

was d I to cany out as her commander the wishes of the 

rnment in regard to the voyage. Among the crew detailed 



AN OVERRULING PROVIDENCE. 499 

for her was the nucleus of a church, in some ten avowed Christians 
of different denominations, warm in the love of the Saviour, 
active in zeal and fervent in prayer, that their careless and uncon- 
verted shipmates might be brought to a like faith and blessedness 
with themselves. Among other means of grace on board pro- 
vision was made for a preached gospel by the addition of a 
chaplain to the complement of her officers. The knowledge of 
these facts, connected with the embarkation on board the 
Niagara of so large and distinguished a party of visitors from a 
pagan land, for a voyage of more than half the circuit of the 
globe, not only awakened a lively interest in the church in 
general, but called forth a widespread and earnest spirit of prayer 
for the ship — for her commander, officers and crew, for her pious 
seamen and her chaplain, and for the noble passengers borne by 
them to their far-off home. Prayer thus elicited was not in vain. 
From first to last the good providence of God seemed specially 
tD encircle and attend the ship. In less than a year she passed 
in safety from storm and tempest, and even from the threatenings 
of them, with unequalled health in the whole ship's company, 
and uninterrupted blessings — over more than forty thousand miles 
of sea, from low southern to the northern, and again from high 
northern to southern latitudes in the voyage to and from Japan, 
and afterwards served fourteen months on the blockade in the 
trying climate of the Gulf of Mexico, including two days' exposure 
in the hazards of battle, without any damage or disaster worthy of 
mention. 

if It is not, however, of these guardian mercies of Providence 
during the cruise, marked as they were, that are so deserving of 
notice, as the richer blessings of grace vouchsafed from the very 
day of departure, manifested chiefly in and through the nightly 
prayer-meeting established on the first evening after leaving port, 
and sustained uninterruptedly to the end of the cruise, excepting 
for a night or two occasionally, under peculiar circumstances of 
ship's duty. An overruling Providence, clearly seen afterwards, 
determined the place in which the meeting was held. It was the 



500 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

intention originally, both of those chiefly interested in its 
establishment, and o( the officers having authority, to designate the 
part of the ship most appropriate for it, to use for the purpose a 
retired spot on the orlop-deck, comparatively remote from the 

;il resort ol the ship's company, with the view of thus 

ring greater quietude and freedom from disturbance than a 
more conspicuous and open situation would admit. It was found 
necessary, however, from the quantity and bulk of the personal 

ts of the ambassadors and their suite, to occupy with these, 
the space thus thought of, and the only alternative was to hold 
the meetings on the spar-deck, open to the observation of all 
hands, officers, men and passengers. The accommodations for 
it consisted in the arrangement of low trestles, and of the requisite 
number of planks for seats — in the form of a hollow square — with 
a chest in lieu of a table in the midst for central lights. Lamps 
were also suspended on either side from beams overhead. This 
undesigned, but under the circumstances, necessary publicity of 
place, soon proved to be the occasion of blessing. It brought 
the prayer-meeting, nightly, to the unavoidable notice of the 
careless and the ungodly, as well as to that of the thoughtful and 
religiously disposed. The result, in many cases, was that which 
an intelligent and accomplished young officer touchingly and 
beautifully expressed, as his personal experience in regard to it, 
when first giving utterance, long afterwards, at this meeting, to the 

-born affections and purposes of a converted sinner. 
" ' Little did I think, was his language/ when first I saw these 
lights gleaming along the deck in the far distance, that they were 
to become beacons to my soul in the voyage of life, or that the 
far-off echoings of the songs of praise and the voice of prayer in 
this spot would prove the means of winning my heart to God, and 
of guiding my feet in the way everlasting/ 

" For some time the meeting was limited almost exclusively to 
the | is men, ten in number. Commodore Mc- 

•:. mu< h as his sympathies were with and in it, did not attend 
at first openly, though often unobservedly within hearing, under 



REMARKABLE RESULTS. 501 

the apprehension that his presence, if known, might operate as a 
restraint upon the seamen in the freedom of their exhortations 
and prayers ; but finding this, on venturing the experiment, not 
to be the case, he became a regular attendant, and often an active 
participator in the devotions of the hour, by addresses of instruction 
and encouragement and by prayer. 

"Soon many of the ships company, who at first stood afar-ofT, 
drew near ; occasionally an officer or two followed the example 
of their commander in being present, till by degrees the ten or 
twelve became fifteen, twenty, then thirty, and forty, and fifty, 
till the regular number amounted to well-nigh if not quite a 
hundred ; while many others, unwilling from fear of reproach 
publicly to join the seated group, sought places around where 
they might see and hear without being themselves especially 
noticed. Long before the meeting bore this external aspect, it 
had become manifest that the promises of hope, with which we 
had been encouraged at the outset, were being fulfilled by the 
presence in our midst of the Spirit of grace in the performance of 
His appointed work to convince of sin, of righteousness, and of 
judgment. Some of the most interesting and most manly of the 
crew, in different parts of the ship, had been so wrought upon by 
the truth, as to be constrained with broken utterance and uncon- 
trolled tears, earnestly to inquire what they should do to be 
saved ; and publicly solicit the prayers of the meeting in their 
behalf. Many of these were soon hopefully converted ; and so 
influenced others by their example as to lead them too, to the 
open profession of repentance toward God and faith in our Lord 
Jesus Christ. Gradually one and another of the officers of 
various ranks and in different departments of the service — ward- 
room officers and engineers, midshipmen and warrant officers — 
who were led to the place of prayer, and brought into the influences 
which had already impressed so many of the crew, were constrained 
in like manner to yield their minds and hearts to the claims of the 
gospel, and to witness a good confession before their shipmates, 
of the Lord Jesus, as the only hope and only Saviour of sinners. 



502 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

"Such, without any special or undue excitement, continued 
to be the religious state of the ship month after month, during 
the greater part of the cruise, till over seventy of the ship's com- 
pany, including fifteen officers, were numbered among the hope- 
fully converted. Although occasionally, in the lapse of time, 
one and another of these fell seemingly away, the spirit of con- 
viction and conversion in others was manifested in greater or less 
frequency, and the prayer-meeting retained its power and spiritu- 
ality to the last. The spectacle presented by it, night after night, 
during a cruise of two years, was a novelty on board of a man-jf- 
war ; the more noticeable, perhaps, after the Niagara became the 
Bag-ship — when the flag-officer of the squadron, and his captain, 
with others of similar official influence on board, were thus seen 
in the same group with the hardy seamen and the humble fore- 
mast hands under their command, bowed together without dis- 
tinction of name or rank, in prayer and praise before a common 
God and Saviour. 

"Whatever the proud and the haughty among men might 

think and say, in contemplating the scene, it was one, not only 

making glad the heart of the Christian on earth, who was privi- 

1 to witness it, but, I doubt not, on the authority of the Word 

of God, giving joy also to the angels in heaven. 

' ' Yours truly, Chas. S. Stewart, 

Chaplain U. S. Navy." 

Said I not truly that her history would justify us in 
calling the Niagara a Gospel ship ? 






CHAPTER XXV. 

PASTORAL SOLICITUDE. 

Christian counsel — Sailor's closet — Refreshing scenes — Religious men ap- 
preciated — Church services — Letter to sailor boy — Perils of the forecastle 
— Dare to be right — Letters prized — Nervous prostration — Resignation — 
Resolutions of Port Society — Sailors' Snug Harbor. 

I HAVE purposely kept out of this book many commu- 
nications from friends expressive of their appreciation of 
the benefits resulting from the correspondence. Some have 
requested me to publish my pastoral letters. This I 
must decline, if for no other reason, than the want of 
room. I comply however to the extent of inserting one 
of the pastorals, and one to a sailor-boy on his first voy- 
age. These may be read by some thoughtless sailor 
after I am in my grave, and perhaps lead a soul to 
Christ. 

1 ' Beloved brethren i?i the Lord — As an evidence of our care for 
your spiritual interest, and of our continued sympathy and 
affectionate regard, accept, we beseech you, this pastoral letter. 
For I assure you that we do not cease to pray for you, and desire 
'that ye might be filled with the knowledge of God's holy will, in 
all wisdom and spiritual understanding ; that ye might walK 
worthy of the Lord to all well pleasing, being fruitful in every 
good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God ; strengthened 
with all might ; according to his glorious power, unto all patience 
and long-suffering with joyfulness/ The privation of spiritual 

503 



504 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

privileges which you all more or less are called upon to endure, 
and the continued exposure oi' those who would live godly in 
Christ Jesus, to the thoughtless and sometimes malicious opposi- 
tion of their ungodly shipmates, make it essential almost that you 
should often be the subject of our heartfelt prayer to God. We 
desire to think of you as peculiarly open to the assaults of the 
great enemy o( souls, and as in special need of the effectual 
fervent prayers of those who have access to the throne of grace. 
But we do not forget that you too can draw near to the Mercy- 
seat in the name of the Crucified One, and that He who has said, 
' Ask and ye shall receive, seek and ye shall find, knock and it 
shall be opened/ will give the necessary grace for every hour of 
trial. We urge you, therefore, to 'be instant in season, out of 
season, watching unto prayer.' 

" i Though to speak thou be not able, 
Always pray and never rest : 
Prayer 's a weapon for the feeble — 
Weakest souls can wield it best/ 

" Pray much, therefore, in secret It is in the closet that the 
Christian buckles on his armor and whets his weapon for the con- 
flict with his enemies. Read and meditate daily on the word of 
God ; let it be your meat and drink to do the will of God, and 
daily ask, ' Lord, what wouldst thou have me to do ? How can I 
h< »nor Jesus to-day ? How may 1 best manifest my love to Him ? 
How convince the world of the loveliness of Christ? How do 
the most good ?' 

1 Daily let parts of Holy Writ be read : 
Let as the body, so the soul have bread/ 

"You cannot, like the landsman, retire to a chamber and 
shut the door, but you can find a closet nevertheless. 'Where 
there's a will there's a way.' There are ten thousand avenues to 
the throne of grace, if we only possess the clue, which is a ready 
mind, a will subdued and wrought into perfect acquiescence with 



REFRESHING SCENES. 505 

the will of Christ — with this the maze may be threaded, the 
problem solved, the difficulty removed. 

" A seaman who was brought to acknowledge Christ on board 
the North Carolina, when speaking of his private devotions, said, 
' I can always find a place to pray when I have a heart to pray. 
I can commune with God leaning over the breach of a gun ; and 
hold communion with him, though fifty men were walking the 
deck at the same time/ Another, who is now almost the 
sole representative of Christ on board a man-of-war, said to me, 
c When I want to commune with God alone, I am never at fault ; 
I crawl out into the lee forechains, and there I worship him 
undisturbed/ Another found a closet under the heel of the bow- 
sprit, and another in the top ; and still another in the bows of the 
launch. Since so many have found means of supplying the soul, 
meditate on Philippians iv. 19 : and let nothing discourage you — 
open your mouth wide and he will fill it. In prayer, remember 

" 'Thou art coming to a King, 
Large petitions with thee bring ; 
For his grace and power are such 
None can ever ask too much/ 

"You will be gratified to know that God in his mercy has 
heard our prayers for seamen, and that on board several of our 
men-of-war refreshing scenes have been witnessed, souls have 
been born again, and in some instances backsliders have been 
reclaimed. The Spirit has been poured out from on high upon 
our own church. Our meetings have been well attended, and 
many have been brought to acknowledge Christ, whose lives have 
been previously spent in the service of Satan. Some of these 
are burning and shining lights — faithful warriors for Christ, who 
have carried his blood-stained banner into the very heart of the 
enemies' camp, and have stood by it with a wonderful fidelity 
until others have rallied to its support 

"The principal item of interest at this time is the work of 
grace which is silently going on as a result, I believe, of our daily 
22 



506 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

morning prayer-meeting, which of late has numbered over fifty 
»ns ; at which, on one occasion, nineteen rose for prayer. 

More than one thousand have attended this meeting, one hundred 
and fifty of whom have arisen for prayer. Two features of this 
ice are worth recording, viz. : No day passes without the 
presence of Strange faces, nor is there a single meeting in which 
we have not unmistakable evidence of the presence of the Holy 
Spirit, either in the conviction or conversion of some soul. Many 
have gone to sea with Christ in their heart, who before, like 
Gallio, cared for none of these things. It has been far from 
uncommon to have men rise in the meeting and say, ' Brothers 
and sisters, pray for me. I am going out in such a ship alone. 
I mean to stand up for Jesus in the forecastle, and try to bring 
some soul to the foot of the cross. Do not forget me. I am 
weak, and need your prayers/ 

' ' The correspondence of the last two months has been of 
unwonted interest, and shows conclusively that our brethren 
afloat are about their Father's business. One of the lieutenants 
on board the Seminole, in a recent letter to me, says : ' It will be 
gratifying to you to know that all the members of your church 
who are on board the Seminole are petty officers — a sure proof 
that even in the estimation of the non-religious, men of consistent 
piety are those upon whom they can most surely rely ; and not, as 
some hold, that religion unfits a man for being a sailor. Of one of 
our men who was invalided home, he says, ' He suffered a great 
deal, but I never heard any complaint from him ; he was indeed 
■ ffthe brightest examples of the joy and peace granted to the 
true believer I have almost ever known.' 

"Such testimonies, from men whose judgment and whose 
character as well as their position, give them authority 
•'•:ak, cannot but be pleasing to those of us who are engaged . 
in th I work. We received into church membership at 

the last two communions a total of 51. Of these seven were 
pro; received by certificate, and the remaining 

forty-two their faith in Christ. Since this year 



CHURCH SERVICES. S°7 

began, the work of the Lord has commenced in the Sabbath- 
school, which now numbers 250 scholars. Some teachers and 
some scholars have united with the church. We enter upon the 
New Year with bright hopes and firm resolves. Our meetings in 
the church amount to 22 a week, including the two sessions of 
the Sabbath-school, the Bible classes, and the morning prayer- 
meetings for seamen, from 9 to 10 o'clock, daily. It may be said 
of a truth, that with us — 

' The happy gates of gospel grace 
Stand open night and day/ 

"And in accordance with His blessed promise, God is in the 
midst of us. We feel in our hearts, and we trust that you can 
respond to the sentiment, ' The Lord hath done great things for 
us — we are glad/ And now, beloved brethren in the Lord, I 
can truly say, in the language of the great apostle, ' Though I be 
absent in the flesh, yet I am with you in the spirit, joying and 
beholding your order, and the steadfastness of your faith in Christ. 
As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in 
him ; rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith as 
ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. Be- 
ware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, 
after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and 
not after Christ. For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the God- 
head bodily ; and ye are complete in him, which is the head of all 
principality and power/ Col. ii. 5-10. ' Put on therefore, as 
the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, 
humbleness of mind, meekness, long-suffering ; forbearing one 
another and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel 
against any. Even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye. And 
above all these things, put on charity, which is the bond of per- 
fectness. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the 
which also ye are called in one body ; and be ye thankful. Let 
the word of Christ dwell in you richly, in all wisdom, teaching 
and admonishing one another, in psalms, and hymns and spiritual 



J08 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

ith grace in your hearts to the Lord. And 
whatsoever ye do, in word or deed, do all in the name of the 

I Jons, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.' 

. iii. 12-17.) 

"The brethren and sisters of our church, 'salute you, always 

laboring fervently for you in prayers that ye may stand perfect and 

iplete in all the will of God/ The members of my own 

family unite with me in earnest prayer for your growth in grace, 

and for your temporal and eternal well-doing. ; Brethren, pray 

for us/ Hoping to hear of your steadfastness in the faith and of 

your usefulness in Christ, believe me, with much love for all the 

brethren in the Lord of every name, 

■ ' Your affectionate Pastor and brother in Christ, 

' ' Chas. J. Jones. " 

"'Let this epistle be read unto all the holy brethren ." 
1 Thcss. v. 27. 

TO A SAILOR BOY. 

14 Dear Edward — Having learned through a friend, that you are 
about to depart to the land of gold — and perhaps with golden 
visions of future prosperity in the paradise of the treasure-hunter, 
5 leave to offer you a few words of Christian counsel ; and I 
do this the more readily, as your father is not at hand to give 
you that paternal advice which I know he would give if he were 
near you at this time. 

" You are quite young to go forth from home, and from the 

restraints of the family, to make your own way through a world of 

care and anxiety, pain and sin ; but not younger than, nor even 

rang as, many who have gained distinction in their later years. 

Let me ask you, therefore, as the pastor and friend of your dear 

mother now in heaven, to keep in mind the great fact, patent to 

all, that however we may be severed from loved ones on earth, 

iic Eye that never slumbers nor sleeps — one Friend who 

is n a, from whom we cannot conceal, or be concealed. 

1 of the sea, as well as of the land. He is every- 



LETTER TO A SAILOR BOY. 509 

where present, so that, if you ' take the wings of the morning, and 
dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there will his hand 
lead you, and his right hand hold you. ' If you say, ' darkness 
shall cover me ' — even the night will be light round about you. 
1 The darkness and the light are both alike to him/ Do not be 
offended then, if I urge upon you the importance, nay, the abso- 
lute necessity of making that great Being your Friend. In order 
to do this it will be necessary to set out with the purpose to do 
his will at all times ; to be governed by his holy law, to obey his 
holy word. Take the precious Bible as a light to your path, and 
a lamp to your feet You are not ignorant of its sacred lessons, 
having been taught them from your childhood. But it is not 
enough to know them. God has said, ' If ye know these things, 
happy are ye if ye do them/ ' He that knoweth his master's will, 
and doeth it not, shall be beaten with many stripes. ' You can- 
not plead ignorance of these things ; for in addition to the 
maternal teachings and example, you have had the training of the 
Sabbath-school, and of the preached word in the sanctuary. 
You are therefore better off by far than those who have been 
brought up in ignorance of these things. 

1 ' You will need all this instruction, however, and all your own 
natural force of character, to be supplemented by the grace and 
favor of God, if you would escape the snares and temptations that 
beset your way. You will need a resolute and sanctified purpose 
to do right in spite of your surroundings. You will find a ship's 
forecastle — as I have found it — a poor school for morals. Yet 
that very forecastle, and the careless companions you will find 
there, cannot prevent the grace of God from finding its way into 
your heart. All the disadvantages you will meet with, all the 
difficulties and temptations you will be called upon to overcome, 
cannot act as a barrier to the favor of God. He is no respecter 
of persons, is confined to no place, is limited by no convention- 
alities or customs, is excluded by no degree of guilt. He can aid 
you in the forecastle, amid the cursing of profane shipmates, and 
convey succor to your struggling spirit, if you ask him, as easily 



510 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

as though your prayers wore offered up in the groined aisles of a 
cathedral, and amid the incense-breathing strains of sacred music. 
But you will require all your energies intensified, all your wisdom 
sharpened, all your courage sustained by unremitting and fervent 
prayer. Go on board your vessel then, with the firm purpose to 
do right, to give to all their due, to render to Caesar the things 
that : s and to God the things that are God's ; and to this 

end be ready to ask what is right, rather than what is custom — 
* what would God have me to do Y rather than what will men 
fme. In a hurried letter like this, written without much 
time for forethought or arrangement, I cannot enter into the 
details of experience with which you will meet, or give counsel 
that will apply to every individual case. But by laying down a 
few general principles you may, by practical application of these, 
find relief in almost every conceivable case. I would advise you 
therefore, to — 

ist. Read and study a portion of the Word of God daily, with 
prayer for divine assistance to understand and apply its sacred 
precepts. 

2nd. Determine, at all hazards, to be conscientiously true 
and just in all your dealings with your fellow-men. 

3rd. Be respectful to your officers at all times, prompt in your 
obedience, faithful to all trusts or duties imposed upon you, 
always looking to God for his blessing. 

4th. Be civil and obliging to your shipmates, respectful in 
your language to all, especially to such as are old, experienced 
seamen. By so doing you will make them your friends, and 
through them will be instructed in those things which will forward 
you in your profession, and secure promotion more rapidly than 
by pursuing an opposite course. It is no small matter, if we 
desire to succeed in our profession, to secure the respect of our 
equals, as well as our superiors in rank. 

5th. Shun the intoxicating cup, as you would the very pesti- 
lmre. Avoid the use of profane language and all bad com- 
pany ; select the virtuous and the good for your companions. In 



LETTER TO A SAILOR BOY. 511 

port seek out the sanctuary of God, frequent its sacred courts, 
and take your shipmates, if possible, with you. What you have 
done for God will never cause you a pang on your death-bed. 

" I will add but one other word, which, with the blessing 
of God, w r ill do as much as anything else to insure you the 
strength and comfort which a life at sea is capable of afford- 
ing. It is this : never allow any one to go ahead of you. 
Give no man or boy a chance to say he did your duty. If a 
royal is to be taken in, a studding-sail to be set — a topsail to be 
reefed, or running gear to be rove, make it a point, if possible, to 
be first aloft, and last down ; and I will engage to ensure you 
the good will of the whole ship's company, both forward and aft. 

"I could write much more, but I must not be prolix, must 
not attempt too much. I will therefore close by assuring you 
once more of my deep interest in you, both for your own, and 
for your mother's sake ; and beg of you to accept my most sincere 
regards for your spiritual as well as your temporal welfare. With 
many prayers for your safety on this voyage, for your success in 
life, and for your final salvation in heaven, believe me, very truly 
and sincerely your friend, Chas. J. Jones." 

This correspondence often involved more than the mere 
labor of writing. Requisitions were frequently made 
upon me to send out to our ships-of-war, needles and 
thread, stationery, books of instruction, sea-boots, and 
other paraphernalia of the sailor's needs. To all these 1 
requests I cheerfully acceded, to the no small gratification 
of those who made them. These kind orifices led to the 
enhanced appreciation of the counsels and warnings I was 
constantly sending them, and to a larger circulation of 
the instruction the epistles contained. For they were 
by no means limited in the range of their influence to 
the persons to whom they were addressed, but were often 
read by every officer, as well as by almost every man in 



512 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

the ship. Many would read a letter and become intcr- 
A in the teachings it conveyed, who would not so 
much as look at a tract. Sometimes they passed 
from ship to ship, until they were actually worn out by 
use. Some of these have called forth the most gratifying 
encomiums on their value to those who received them. 
They declare that they were both encouraging and 
stimulating, urging them to faithfulness in duty, to pa- 
tience in suffering, and to continued perseverance in well- 
doing. One who had long enjoyed my communications, 
wrote me : 

11 Your kind and truly Christian letters are always welcome and 
highly esteemed — especially so, as you, by God's grace, have 
been instrumental in bringing me from the paths of sin and folly, 
to true happiness and God. I can truly say that they have been 
a great comfort to me, and to all other Christian men and officers, 
with whom I have sailed in different ships. It would be scarcely 
possible to over-estimate their value to sailors who are trying to 
lead Christian lives on board ships at sea. No man needs kind 
counsel more than a religious sailor, who is often shut up for years 
together with wicked and impious men, whose fierce opposition 
and bad example tends to pluck up and destroy the good seed 
sown in the heart." 

Another writes : "I thank you for your beautiful letter. I can 
assure you that your correspondence with seafaring men is one 
of the greatest blessings that God has bestowed on us outside his 
own revelation. n 

Still another : " Your Pastoral letter came to me yesterday, as 
a messenger from above, to cheer my drooping spirits ; bidding 
in • not despair, but to look aloft to the Giver of victories of all 
mies — to them that love Him." 

These testimonies might be indefinitely increased. 
But this will suffice. In the spring of 1863, my con- 






RESIGNATION. 513 

nection with the Mariners' church under the care of the 
Port Society, was dissolved. Eight years and a half of 
unremitted work, — during the whole of which I was 
never absent from my pulpit for any cause for more 
than two consecutive Sabbaths, — and that occurred but 
twice — broke down my health entirely. My physician 
assured me that a rest of some months was essential, if 
I desired or hoped to continue my ministry. An appli- 
cation was therefore made to the New York Port Society 
at its meeting in April, for permission to be absent from 
my pulpit for three months. This request was cheerfully 
and unanimously granted by the Board. I immediately 
set about making preparations for my journey. But on 
the 7th of April I received a note from the Trustees of 
the Sailors' Snug Harbor, on Staten Island, stating that I 
had been unanimously elected to the chaplaincy of that 
Institution. As I was not an applicant for that position, 
and had been elected without seeking it, it appeared to 
me the call of Divine Providence. After making it a 
matter of prayer, therefore, and consulting my most 
judicious friends, I considered it my duty to accept the 
call, and notified the Trustees to that effect. My next 
duty was to acquaint the Port Society with my accept- 
ance, and to tender to them my resignation, which I did 
in the following words : 

"New York, April 13th, 1863. 
"To the Board of Directors of the New York Port Society: 
"Gentlemen — Having unexpectedly, and without seeking it, 
received a unanimous call from the Trustees of the Sailors' Snug 
Harbor on Staten Island to the chaplaincy of that institution, 
after prayerful consideration, and consultation with my most 
judicious friends, I concluded that it was my duty to accept it 

22"~ 



5 14 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

as the call of Divine Providence. I therefore beg leave to tender 
u mv resignation of the pastoral charge of the Manners 
church under your direction. And in so doing, permit me to 
express my sincere gratitude to the Board for all the kindnesses 
experienced at their hands. 

•• Thanking God for the pleasant intercourse that has existed 
between us for the last eight years and a half, and praying that he 
will continue to sustain you in your support of the Mariners' 
church, believe me very truly and respectfully yours, 

"Chas. J. Jones." 

In reply to the above I received, while in London, the 
following letter and resolutions: 

"Directors' Rooms of the Society for Promoting the 
Gospel among Seamen in the Port of New York 
(Port Society) 72 Madison Street. 

Ntw York, April 2 2nd, 1863. 
"Rev. Chas. J. Jones, London — Dear Sir: Your letter of 
resignation of the pastoral charge of our Mariners' church, dated 
the 13th instant, was read to the Board of Directors, at a special 
meeting held this afternoon, and accepted by them. 

The separation of the tie that has bound us together «for so 
manv pears is painful to us, but as it is the Lord's will, we are 
satisfied, and trust that he will continue to smile on our joint 
labors, although in separate fields. 

You bear with you our affection and esteem, and our prayers 
will follow you. " Yours in Christ Jesus, 

''William D. Harris, 

"Cor. Sec. Port Society:' 

"New York, May 14/h, 1863. 
li Pv. Chas. f. Jones : Dear Sir— A have much pleasure in 
waiting upon you with the annexed copy of the report of the 
I its adoption by our Board. 
u Yours in Christ, W. D. Harris, Cor. Sec. Port Society." 



RESOLUTIONS OF PORT SOCIETY. 5 I 5 

"The Committee appointed to draft resolutions expressive of 
the Port Society's estimate of the services of the Rev. Chas. J. 
Jones, respectfully report the following : 

:i Resolved, That in view of the withdrawal of Rev. Charles J. 
Jones, from the Pastorate of the Mariners' church, after a faithful 
service of more than eight years, to accept the chaplaincy of the 
Sailors' Snug Harbor, this Board feels called upon to express its 
high appreciation of the zeal, energy, fidelity, and general accept- 
ability with which Mr. Jones has performed the duties of his 
office, and their sense of the loss they sustain in parting with one 
whose labors have been so abundantly, so constantly, and so 
signally blessed of God. 

" Resolved, That as requested, the prayers of this Board shall 
follow Mr. Jones during his absence in foreign lands ; and it is 
our earnest hope that he may be so renewed in body and mind 
by his trip, as to be fitted for even greater usefulness in the new 
sphere of labor to which we trust God has called him. 

" Resolved, That the Board recognize in the good fruits attend- 
ant on the ministry of Mr. Jones, while in its employment, and in 
the general cordiality and co-operation existing, reason for pro- 
found gratitude to God. 

* ' Resolved, That the Corresponding Secretary transmit a copy 
of these Resolutions to Rev. Mr. Jones. 

' ' New York, May nth, 1863. " 

To these very acceptable documents I responded as 
follows : 

" East London, June ioih, 1863. 
" Mr. W. D. Harris, Cor. Sec. N. V. Port Society : 

"Dear Brother in Christ — I have inexpressible pleasure in 
acknowledging the receipt of the Resolutions passed by the 
Board of Directors of the New York Port Society, on the 22nd 
of April and the eleventh of May, respectively ; the one accept- 
ing my resignation, and the other expressive of the estimate the 
gentlemen of the Board had formed of my services while Pastor 



5 lG FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

of the Mariners 1 church. In reply, you will permit me, through 

aider tothe Board my sincere and grateful appreciation 

of their expressions of good will, and of their satisfaction with the 

manner in which the duties of the pastorate have been performed. 

gracious results, which, under God, have followed those 

labors, and which they have so kindly referred to in the Resolu- 

. are due alone to the Holy Spirit, to whom, with the Father 

and the Son, be all the glory. 

" Permit me, also, to reciprocate all their kind feelings, and 
all the fervent prayers with which they are following me in my 
absence, and also to assure them that I shall ever esteem as the 
happiest portion of my ministry, that period in which I was 
associated with and assisted by the New York Port Society. For 
all their kind forbearance, for all their hearty co-operation, for all 
their Christian sympathy, and for their long continued and 
unwavering attachment to the blessed work in which we were 
jointly engaged, as well as for all the acts of personal kindness I 
have experienced at their hands, I beg them once more to accept 
my unfeigned thankfulness, together with the assurance that my 
unceasing prayers for the Divine blessing to rest upon the New 
Y< »rk Port Society, and upon the New York Mariners' church, 
which they have so long and so faithfully sustained, shall daily 
ascend to that God who has with so much condescension associa- 
ted the extension of the Redeemer's kingdom, and the building 
up of his glory among the nations, with the conversion of the 
" abundance of the sea." 

" Praying that God may long spare you to aid the church with 
your labors, your counsels and your prayers — believe me, very 
affectionately and fraternally, yours in Christ Jesus. 

i( Chas. J. Jones." 

On my return from Europe, in July, I entered upon 
the duties of my new field as chaplain of the Sailors' Snug 
Harbor, where I have labored for more than twenty years; 
and having obtained help of God, continue to this day. 



CHAPTER XXVI. 

TESTIMONIES AND PASTORAL LETTERS. 

Close of narrative — Marvellous changes — One roll in the gutter — Prodi- 
gals provident — New aspirations — Rapid promotion — Report of Secre- 
tary of the Navy — Piety appreciated — Testimony of Naval officers— 
A crucial test — Under fire — God on our side — " Hitherto, and no fur- 
ther" — Hand of God acknowledged — "Iron hearts win" — Results, 
known and unknown — Glory to God in Christ. Amen. 

It is time to draw this narrative to a close. Not that 
the ground is fairly covered and the work fully detailed, 
nor because material and important facts are wanting to 
edify and instruct, as well as to claim and hold the in- 
terest of the reader ; but simply for want of space to 
record individual instances of devotion, and the mani* 
fest influence of the Spirit of grace on the hearts of 
earnest, indefatigable and heroic, though humble and 
unlettered men, who were, in hundreds of instances, 
turned from darkness unto light, and from the bondage 
of Satan, to the liberty of the sons of God. 

This holy influence was felt and exhibited, not only 
in its effects upon the heart and conscience, in bringing 
out the higher moral traits of character, developing 
faith in the formerly faithless, and homage toward God, 
where there had been the most callous unconcern for, 
if not the most blasphemous opposition to, all things 
and persons, sacred and divine; but in stimulating 

51? 



5 18 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

the physical and the intellectual M pari passu/' with the 
spiritual Not only were the impatient made enduring, 
the tempestuous calm, the irresolute firm, and the weak 
Strong, but the careless became tidy, the riotous quiet, 
and the intemperate sober. Lewd songs and conversa- 
tion gave place to hymns of praise and purity of speech. 
Even am >ng the unconverted these things were noticed 
in no small degree. Such was the indirect power of 
good example. Men who had been profligate with 
their earnings, spending their money for that which is 
not bread, who labored sometimes through an entire 
cruise of three years for " one roll in the gutter/' lavish 
of their means and careless of themselves, began to save, 
to look toward the future, with thought of coming 
needs. Wayward sons who had wandered the earth 
and seas over, wasting their substance in riotous living 
for years, dead in reality to family ties and affections, 
without communication with home and loved ones, were 
suddenly filled with regret and shame for past miscon- 
duct, and gave evidence of returning reason, not only 
by writing to their parents, but by forwarding to them 
substantial proof of their filial affection. Husbands and 
fathers, long since given up as dead, resumed correspond- 
ence with wives and children long neglected, and 
became, once more, provident and thoughtful for the 
dear ones. 

In many, many instances, it was my happy privilege to 
become the bearer of the glad tidings, that the dead were 
"alive again 91 " the lost found;" and to open up once 
more channels of communication which had been consi- 
dered as closed forever. Half-pay checks and drafts on 
banking-houses having correspondents with foreign 



NEW ASPIRATIONS. 519 

lands became current and monthly events. In short, 
"old things,'' with these restored ocean wanderers, had 
" passed away " ; behold, " all things had become new." 
There was, too, a marked tendency towards self-respect, 
and a desire to rise in their profession ; a longing for ed- 
ucation and social elevation. The filthy and riotous as- 
sociations of the rum boarding-house and the blood-suck- 
ing landlord had lost their charm. Men who had never 
before any idea of becoming anything but denizens of the 
forecastle, whose aspirations, if they had ever had any, 
were kept down by the force of appetite and passion, 
or by want of an intelligent appreciation of their own 
abilities, were seized with an ardent desire to better their 
condition. Schools of navigation were sought out. 
Books were purchased with the purpose of cultivating 
the mind. 

The opening of the Rebellion, in 1861, afforded a field 
for the exercise of the best powers of all in whose bo- 
soms the fires of ambition were not entirely extinguished ; 
and the excitements it created gave the needed stimulus. 
One lady in New York, a teacher of navigation, now my 
devoted wife, prepared hundreds of these young men for 
their positions on the quarter-deck of our men-of-war, 
many of whom were afterwards commended for their 
coolness and bravery in the hour of battle. Many of 
these are yet in positions of trust and responsibility, to 
which they were elevated by a grateful Government at 
the close of the war. 

In corroboration of this statement, I may quote here 
the words of Hon. Gideon Welles, Secretary of the U. S. 
Navy, who on page xiii. of his Report to Congress, in 
1865, speaks of the faithfulness and efficiency of our vol- 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

tmteer officers, many of whom rose to their positions of 
trust from before the mast, as follows: 

"Three hundred and twenty-two (322) officers traitorously 
abandoned the service to which they had dedicated their lives, 
proved false to the Bag which they had sworn to support, and to 

government which had confided in their honor and relied on 
their fidelity to sustain it in conflict and peril. The embarrass- 
ment caused by these desertions in the moment of trial was 
temporary. Better men from the merchant marine, educated, 
and vastly more efficient, promptly volunteered their services, in 
many instances at great pecuniary sacrifice, to fight the battles of 
the Union. About seven thousand five hundred of these gallant 
and generous spirits, have, after examination, received appoint- 
ments and been employed in the navy. 

Schools were established to instruct and perfect them in the 
rudiments of gunnery and nautical routine, and it is due to 
them to say that they have acquitted themselves with credit and 
served with zeal and fidelity. The intercourse between these 
volunteer officers and the officers of the regular navy has been 
productive of mutual good-will and respect. It will, I trust, lead 
to lasting p irsonal friendships and ensure enduring intimacy be- 

n the commercial and naval services. Most of the volunteer 
officers have received an honorable discharge and returned to 
their peaceful professional pursuits. I take this occasion to 

a my annual suggestion, that some of the most distinguished 
of these heroic and loyal men, of admitted capability and merit, 

h ive served the country so faithfully and so well, be added 
to the navy after an examination by a board of officers, appointed 
for that purpose. Such an addition to the navy, of brave and 

ligent representatives from the commercial marine, will be a 
fitting and honorable recognition of the services of a body of men 
me gallantlv forward in a period of national peril to sus- 
tain the cau c :e of their country." 

The instances in which the force of character was intcn- 



TESTIMONY OF NAVAL OFFICERS. 52 1 

sified and improved and sustained by the teachings of 
the Holy Spirit are too numerous to mention. It was by 
no means uncommon for officers of vessels to write to me, 
in praise of the conduct of Christian men, on board their 
respective ships. These men, generally, were placed in 
positions of trust and responsibility by their officers ; 
and by their faithfulness to duty called forth the enco- 
miums of those who knew and appreciated their value. 
One naval officer wrote me : 

1 ■ It will be gratifying to you to know that all the members of 
your church on board this ship are petty officers — a sure proof, 
that even in the estimation of the non-religious, men of consistent 
piety, are those upon whom they can most surely rely ; and that 
it is not true, as some affirm, that religion unfits a man for ' the 
duties of a sailor." 

Again, a lieutenant, himself a man of God, wrote me 
of the ten Christian men on board his vessel, the U. S. 
steamer Seminole, in July, i860 : 

" I feel with you that it is indeed a privilege to sail with a 
portion of our crew who are seeking a 'better country/ We 
have had far less trouble with the men of this ship, than I have 
ever known in an experience of twenty years ; and I think it is 
due in no inconsiderable degree, to the influence of the Christian 
sailors on the berth-deck. May they be strengthened to con- 
tinue their labor of love, until its joyous influence shall extend 
from the forecastle to the cabin of every ship that floats." 

These testimonies to the good qualities of Christian sea- 
men, and their influence upon their shipmates, may be 
profitably followed by their own attestation to Hie value 
of godliness, as it bears upon "the life that now is," as 
well as on that rt which is to come." This much will ap- 



522 FIFTY VEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

pear to be patent, at least, they themselves being the wit- 
es — viz., that, other tilings being equal, the sailor who 
who is imbued with the Spirit of God, is none the less 
fitted to grapple with the difficulties incident to his call- 
ing, nor to meet the exigencies of his daily and varying 
experiences. In the hurtling rain of shot and shell in 
battle, or in conflict with the elements of Nature, he is 
equally at home, and is the peer of the unbeliever. To 
steer his trick or to storm a battery, is all one to him. 
lie is as calm and collected under fire as he is tenacious 
and persevering when lugging at the reef-earing on a 
yard-arm, in a gale of wind. Serving the gun on the 
deck of his own ship, or on howitzer duty ashore, he is 
as brave, submissive and obedient to orders as any of his 
unconverted shipmates. In fact, he loses none of the 
characteristics and qualifications of a true sailor by becom- 
ing a man of God. This is a lozu view to take of his at- 
tainments, I admit. Yet, after all, it is, virtually, assent- 
ing to the statement of Young, that, in whatever station of 
life, at sea or ashore : 

11 The Christian is the highest style of man." 

The proof in this case must be derived from a compari- 
son of their conduct with that of their shipmates in try- 
ing circumstances. A crucial test may be found in their 
deportment under an enemy's fire. I therefore subscribe 
their own statements on such occasions. A member cf 
my own church wrote me, in October, 1861 : 

lay last we were ordered to open fire on a sand 

i bint The fire was speedily returned. It was 

• I felt where my Strength lay. Oh, were there ever such 

3 I then enjoyed ! Oh, how resigned I felt to 



GOD ON OUR SIDE. 523 

my Father's will when the shots of the enemy came flying thick 
and iast around us ! I felt that my Saviour was near me. It is 
in such trying seasons that one feels it a glorious thing to be 
a child of God." 

Another, also a member of the Mariners' church, in a 
letter from Warsaw Inlet, says : 

"Our vessels, with others of the Blockading Squadron, attack- 
ed a strong shore battery. We were constantly under fire from 
eleven- inch shell and shot. I wish to acknowledge the goodness 
and mercy of God to me and those around me in that hour of 
trial. How good it is to 'abide under the shadow of the 
Almighty ! ? He has shielded me, and kept me from all fear and 
doubt. He has covered my head in the day of battle. When shot 
were falling and shell were bursting all around us, the blessed 
promises of the 91st Psalm gave me great comfort. I felt safe in 
my Saviour's love, whatever the dispensations of his righteous 
providence might be." 

Still another, after the passage of Forts Jackson and 
St. Philip, wrote : 

' ' My Dear Pastor — I have never before been under an enemy's 
fire. I felt a little timid. But I prayed to God to be with us ; 
for He alone, at such a time, can save from harm. I prayed that 
he would protect me, if it was his most gracious will, and that if I 
fell he would take me to himself. After the enemy surrendered, 
there was some shaking of hands and blessing of God, and thank- 
ing him, among our men for his great protection of our lives. I 
never shall forget that morning. 1 wish you to pray to our 
Father in heaven, that my life, which he saved then, may be 
spent in his service and to his praise. n 

From another vessel, in the same fight, one of our 
brethren says : 

* k I told my shipmates, that God was on our side, as there has 



5-4 F1FTV YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

always been a right and wrong in these contending questions. 
1 therefore went into battle without fear. After we ran die 
gauntlet that morning of the 24th of April, it would have done 
heart good to have seen my shipmates return thanks to 
Almighty God that blessed morning for our happy deliverance, 
and for our glorious victory." 

Yet one more, gave his experience thus : 

4 ' You know already the exciting and dangerous scenes through 
which we have passed, by the blessing of God, unharmed. Oh, 
my dear Pastor, if ever religion is good for a man, it is when shot 
and shell like hail are falling around him. During the bom- 
bardment of Forts Jackson and St. Philip, I was able to see the 
ming of the words : ; Hitherto shalt thou come, and no further.' 
The next vessel to me was sunk. Several shots passed over, and 
around us, between the rigging and masts; shells exploded 
directly over our heads, falling on all sides, but not one single 
piece was allowed to come on board. Some may say, 'It was all 
chance ;' but I say it was the hand of Almighty God. We are 
1 again to enter battle. We are now on our way to Vicks- 
We expect warm work ; but with our trust in God, we 
hope to conquer. We believe our cause is just, and if need be, 
hundreds of us are willing to lay down our lives for it. I ask the 
rs of my beloved church, that I may be found faithful to 
my God, to my family, and to my country ; that I may do my 
duty well, and if our Heavenly Father sees fit to call me, I shall 
b • ready to go/' 

This good brother's after career in the Yazoo, Arkan- 
sas and Red River expeditions, was distinguished by- 
deeds of bravery which were not often excelled during 
the war. Surely these are the men to illustrate the 
words of the now glorified Christian Admiral, Andrew 
II. Foote — who, in Mobile Bay, when his wooden ships 



"IRON HEARTS WIN.' 525 

were menaced with destruction, infused fresh courage into 
his brave men by saying, 

" It is not the iron clads, boys, 
But the iron hearts that win." 

These are but samples; yet are characteristic of the 
whole. 

I have not mentioned by name one-tenth of the vessels- 
of-war and the numerous merchantmen, with which I 
have been in correspondence, nor can I do so. I must 
content myself with a brief resume of the efforts put forth, 
and leave to the imagination of the reader the results 
which might be expected to follow. On board two hun- 
dred and eight men-of-war, my correspondents num- 
bered from one to seventeen, an average of two to each 
vessel. In one hundred and fifty-seven of these, the cause 
of Christ was represented by five hundred and seventy- 
five Christian men. On board of one hundred and three 
of them members of my own church assumed the labor- 
ing oar. In thirty-six of them prayer and religious meet- 
ings were sustained, with few exceptions, and with more 
or less regularity by the fore-mast men. Of the whole 
number only seven were provided with chaplains. These 
were the Colorado, Cumberland, Hartford, Lancaster, 
Niagara, Roanoke and Wabash. 

The precious revival among the men of the sea, as far 
as the Mariners' church was concerned, continued up to 
the time of my resignation, in April, 1863; the services 
averaging nearly twenty a week. A register of the names 
of those who visited the church and parsonage was kept, in 
which was recorded, not only the name, age and nation- 
ality of each man, but also that of the vessel in which and 



$20 FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

the port to winch he was to sail. As a consequence of 
this the sailor often found on his arrival in a foreign land 
a letter addressed to him, filled with good counsel and 
sympathy, and assuring him that he was held in pre- 
cious remembrance by his friends ashore. These missives 
of love were generally answered by the sailor at once, 
convincing us that good was accomplished which the 
preached word had failed to secure. An idea of the 
extent to which this feature of the work was carried, may 
be gathered from the fact, that during my pastorate, six 
thousand five hundred and eighty- four letters were thus 
written ; each containing some little tract or leaflet, 
adapted, in most cases, to the spiritual condition of the 
recipient, when that was known. The responses to these 
communications, always full of grateful appreciation, were 
often as numerous as those which were sent. In one 

r letters came to me from one hundred and sixty- 
four different points on the earth's surface, including 
Europe, Asia, Africa, America, Australia, and the Isles 
of almost every sea. 

In addition to these transient epistles, which were 

sent out, sometimes more than a thousand a year, I 

wrote for several years an occasional pastoral letter, 

which was lithographed, and the fac simile sent to each 

Lg member of the church, in whatever part of the 

world he might happen to be. In this way a reciprocity 

and of interest was kept up between pastor and 

Ac. Extracts from the letters received were read at 

monthly concert of prayer, which resulted in the 

ication of the hearers, and tended to enlarge the in- 
fluence of the church. The result of these agencies and 
instrumentalities, sanctified as they were by the word of 



RESULTS, KNOWN AND UNKNOWN. 527 

God and by prayer, through the Holy Spirit, cannot be 
approximated. Until the judgment is set and the books 
are opened, and the sea shall give up the dead that 
are in it, their full value will never be known. Some 
of the results we do know, because they have been 
recorded. 

In the Registry kept during my connection with the 
church there were enrolled names of more than one thou- 
sand souls who, in the judgment of Christian charity, 
were believed to have been hopefully converted through 
this agency. Of these, more than two-thirds were sea- 
men. During those eight years and a half I delivered 
over seventeen hundred sermons and addresses ; wrote 
one hundred and sixty-seven articles for the press, and 
had personal religious conversation with twelve thousand 
seven hundred and sixty-two seamen, with a large 
majority of whom 1 bowed in prayer. More than twenty 
thousand persons called on me on official business. I 
gave away judiciously, six thousand five hundred and 
eighty-four volumes of religious reading matter; scatter- 
ed millions of pages of tracts and religious periodicals ; 
made over four thousand visits to ships, boarding-houses 
and families, soothing their sorrows and frequently 
burying their dead; and received into communion with 
the church, seven hundred and sixty souls. Three- 
fourths of this number were admitted on a confession of 
their faith ; two-thirds were men of the sea. 

The Lord's Supper was administered monthly ; and 
during the seven years of our church organization, but 
one communion season went by without our receiving 
from three to sixty souls. The seamen with whom I had 
pastoral intercourse represented almost every nationality 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG SAILORS. 

known to commerce, and spoke some sixty different Ian- 
and dialects. Of the hundreds who were known 
to have gone to sea pricked in their hearts, many never 
returned to us to speak of the results of their convictions; 
scnue in all probability have found a resting-place in other 
churches and in other lands, and have enriched with their 
religious experience, distant fields of Christian efforts. 
Many doubtless went down at sea. 

It is pleasing to know that the old church still lives, is 
still operative of good, redolent of deeds of mercy and 
love, and that souls are weekly born into the kingdom 
through the tireless labors of her faithful pastor, Rev. E. 
D. Murphy, and his effective corps of missionary helpers. 
May she continue to be a fruitful bough — and, like Joseph, 
may the arms of her hands be made strong by the hands 
of the mighty God of Jacob. And to our covenant God 
be all the glory, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. 



INDEX. 



Academic Studies, 73 

Academy at Woodbridge, 130 

Adams, Rev. Wm., D.D., 193, 333 
Ambassador for Christ, An, 65 

Always with me, 488 

All aboard, 152 

Awakening, A blessed, 20c, 267 
Accessions, Large, 324 

Adelaide, Port, 26 

" After many days," jy, 179 

" Acteon," H. B. M. S., Captain 

of, 481 

Allegiance, Steadfast, 176 

Alexander, Rev. Jas. W., D.D., 97 
Address to Princeton Students, 332 
Address, Cooper Institute, 333 

Anderson, Chas. M., 211 

Anecdote of F. Marshall, 424 

Answer, The missionary's, 185 

Apeak. My ensign, 55 

Asleep in Jesus x 7^ 

Aweigh for London, 152 

Arrested by Divine Mercy, 487 

Army, Carrying Christ into the 451 
Accident, A serious, 108 

African Squadron, The, 456 

April 27th, 1859, 334, 338, 340. 

474, 493 

Articles of War, 20 

Agonies of guilt, 48 

Auspicious beginning, 200 

Australia, Ship again for 26 

Ascutney, U. S. S., 453 

Allured by a life of love, 482 

Allured from haunts cf sin, 195 

Assurance, Full, 453 

Auxiliary Volunteers, 195 

Babe in Christ, A, 148 

Babes, One of Christ's, 187 

23 



Barque Benefactor, The, 477 
Battles, In seventeen, 139 
Blank cartridge, 55 
Baptized in infancy, 320 
Beating against strong current, 444 
Beach-combers, 27 
Beam ends, On her, . 30 
Breakers, Hauled out of, 441 
Beecher, Rev. J. C, his testimo- 
ny, 477 
Beauregard, U. S. S., 444 
Blessed to die for His cause, 157 
Blest be the tie that binds, 481 
Benevolent operations, 240 
Bible, My first, 36 
Bible in the forecastle, 54 
Bible colporteur, 112 
Bible at bottom of chest, 124 
Bible thrown overboard, 246 
Bible class, Chinese, 274 
Bible, a precious book to me, 323 
Bible class, Weekly, 457 
Billow, The brig, 37 
Billows, The lashing 439 
Birth of a new enterprise, 205 
Brig Byron, The, 40 
Brig Delight, The, 69 
Blindness, Spiritual removed, 177 
Bisby, James. Conversion of 282 
Broadside, The first, of the ene- 

m y> 55 

Boatmen of the Mississippi, 80 

Boatmen, Preaching to, 81 

Boatmen's church organized, 83 
Boatmen's church, Corner-stone 

of, laid, 84 

Boatmen's church dedicated, 84 

Bottle, Tempted by the, 476 

Blood, Efficacy of the, 125 

529 






INDIA. 



op for the ii ig, 476 
\\k> tkJyn, l. S. Frigate, 

klyn, her noble pay-master, 4-0 
Buhner, Albert, his progi 
Bull Run, Wounded at, 
Burden, An awful, 438 

Burdened S 196 

St. Louis, 

w York, 87 

Lge, The happy, 60 

Changes, Marvellous, 518 

Changed mai 174 

. I »m the forecastle to 

the, 173 

ed ofl Hat:, 115 

.in, A praying, 171 

Candles. A lew more, 429 

Cape Town, Glorious scenes at, 492 

Characteristics, Well-marked, 

403, 406 

ay again, 171 

away a third time, 173 

.in proud of his crew, 481 

in encouraging the meet- 

444 
Chaplain, 2,500 souls without 
one, 466 

Ly seven to 208 

sh 525 

Chaplains indifferent, 475 

I j lain Stewart's testimony, 341 

I sing Mood, The, 50 

the land, 57 

sert, 27 

Crew, a godless, 32 

i banner, 470 

embittered against con- 

465 

Child, a little, -hall lead them, 244 

( liild again, I was a, 460 

•king in, 178 

Christi 1 curiosity, 62 

I Ian, A wild, 447 
men, 575 in 157 

5 2 5 

Chr -it, IIO 

. ' . faithful, 205 

73 

: 
( 

I 246 



Convert, Labors of, in Chili, 251 
Convert, 1 hippy death of, 
Congress, U. s. Ship, 430 

Congress, U. S. Ship, before the 

attack, 431 

Congress, her praying sailors, 

432, 440 
Congress, Brave defence of, 44S 

Covenant in, with God, 439 

Converted, A ship's crew, 199 

Converted, Three nationalities, 117 
Converted, Ten in the forecastle, 118 
Converted, Spanish sailors, 188 

Converted, thirteen of the crew, 273 
Converted, hopefully, over 70, 502 
Conversion of 15 officers, 495 

Converts, One hundred, 203 

Converts in twos and threes, 430 
Converts, Crew embittered 

against the 468 

Converts, Forty on board II. 

B. M. 8. Acteon, 481 

Consecration to Christ, 56 

Consecrating prayer, The, 57 

Correspondence, Value of, 153, 154 
Correspondence retroactive, 154 

Correspondence, Origin and 

purpose of, 191 

Correspondence, Extent of, 192 

Correspondence, U. S. S. St. 

Louis, 327 

Correspondence appreciated, 512 
Correspondence with N. Y. 

Tort Society, 513 

Correspondents on 208 men of 

war, 525 

Conviction of sin, The first 

heavy, 19, 125 

Conscience to the fore, 163 

Comfort in the night watches, 245 
Colors nailed to the mast, 332 

Colored disciple sustained, 442 

Colonizing, 458 

doie, the, at the head, 473 
Commodore choked with emo- 
tion, 493 
trkers with Christ, 89 
Corroborative testimony, 70 

CI »ud, Under a, 479 

Co nmunion, the first, 201 

isel, ( Ihrtstian, 503 

Confusi onfounded, 304 

Consul, The inhuman, 281 



INDEX. 



531 



Curiosity, The sailor a, 

Church, Unite with the, 

Church work in 1856, 

Church, A straight wake for the 

Church organized on a union 
basis, 

Churches, Stirring up the 

Church packed, 

Church, The awaking, 

Church Militant and Trium- 
phant, 

Church members increased, 

Church, Chinese, stirred up, 

Cumberland, t\ S. S. 

Cumberland, her hopeless fight, 

Cumberland goes down with 
her ensign apeak, 

Cruise, End of the, 

Cyclone, A, 

Dark preceding the dawn, 

Darkest of dark days, 

Darkness made visible, 

Dark side of humanity at sea, 

Daily service to end of cruise, 

Daily food, The Christian's, 

Debauchery and shame. 

Death's door, At, 

Death calm and peaceful, 

Death full of hope, 

Death, A happy, 

Death-bed triumphs, 

Deaths oft, In, 

Death physical and life spirit- 
ual, 

Defection of a few, 

'Devil, Now Mr., I've got 
you," 

Devi] a hard master, 

I decisive moment, The, 

\ >iary, A blank, 

tracts from, 
and rags, 

Divine 

Divine service at sea, 

Divine service maintained, 
it ion, 

nents, 
. The long, 
ier, 
1 of an infidel, 

liy for Christ 

. ju love I >od ? 



364 

60 

144 

147 



151 

23S 
349 

372 
241 
476 
429 
43^ 

43° 
21 
26 

47 

39 

5i 

399 

472 

56 
172 

22 

137 
176 
242 

25 § 
278 

490 
476 

293 

55 

161 



266, 33 



33i 

168 

77 
203 

457 
121 

390 
382 

453 

*5 
441 

122 

244 



Dying appeal, The, 

Early life, 

Early advantages, 

Escape, A wonderful, 21, 

Examined by Dr. Ashbel Green, 

Eden, The barque, 

Element, In his, 

Electricity, Converted through, 

Everything for the best, 

Experience, The captain's, 

Extent of the work, 

Elliott, Captain Samuel, Mission 

ary, 
Elliott converted at sea, 
Elliott licensed to preach, 
Elliott, his sermon at Honolulu, 
Elliott, his happy death, 
Englishman, The younp-, 
Evil courses, 

Evil overcome with good, 
Efforts, unselfish, blest, 
Europe, Trip to, 
Eyes, My, opened, 
Fatal fire in May, 1849, 
Earewell tc college life, 
Farewell sermon, 
Farewell letters, 
Farewell meeting, April 27th, 

1859, 
Hag, The rebel, must come 

down, 
Flag, U. S. steamer, 
Flagship of African Squadron, 
Father converted, 
Failure, The secret of, 
Family altar in the forecastle, 
Faithful to their shipmates, 
Faithful among the faithless, 
Faithful worker, A, 
Fear of judgment taken away, 
Fears of death and hell, 
Features of the revival (U. S. S. 

St. Louis), 
Feed body and soul at same 

time, 
Fred. Star awakened, 
Fred. Star's soul thirst, 
Fred. Star, his life teaching, 
Fred. Star in the revenue cutter 

Jos. Lane, 
Fred. Star enters U. S Navy, 
Fred Star still living for God, 
First fruits, 



1 8c 

13 
121 
446 

73 
16 

443 
221 

443 
3- * 
526 



2i 5 
217 

21S 
220 
i53 
33 
435 
203 

5i3 

56 
82 

74 

87 

202 

344 

449 
449 
45 6 
131 

43 
151 
432 
472 
211 
124 

4i 

414 

59 
115 
116 
117 

117 
118 
118 
101 






INDEX, 



. i f my , 137 

j ordeal, The, 

Fire, Und 4*9i S 22 j 

divine love burned on, 455 

•- A. 360 

astle, A^curious, 290 

peak, In the, 369 

Forepassage, Meetings in the, 473 

Foretop, Letter from the 464 

Formidable difficulties, 410 

I thousand miles safely, 499 

Fruit unto eternal lite, 126 ' 

Fruit appearing, 196 

(iate of heaven, The very, 462 

Gathering the crew, 100 

e sufficient tor me, 449 

Grateful, Sailors are, 181 

. ful letter. A, 384 

Grateful for counsel, 463 

te ful for correspondence, 478 

Gardner, Joseph EL, 212, 213 

Graphic delineation, 494 

>n, Captain Roland, 207 

dan sailor, a missionary, 148 

( verms, season of, 100 

Gem of purest ray serene, A 494 

fge, 491 

Grief, I with, 146 

is with us, 473 

('f)-l has been with us, 486 

tten, 170 

I lace and blue flannel, 485, 493 

I ship, A, 485 

nine a crew on Christian 

482 

I work inaugurated, 442 

work suffered a check, 495 

jed prayerfully sown, 480 

. 1 So men stop tl 324 

•: difficulty, 411 

Growtl 273 

[uadron, Mission work of, 392 

i'iie aged, 442 

Guilt, A 48 

e, 319 

r, One roll in the, 517 

1 , 40S 

I [and in the dark, The, 319 

1 [and oji shoulder, 284, 

Hadley, < reo., di 

243 



1 [appier than ever, 152 

1 [arris, Wm, 1>., 206 

Hartford, {], S. S. Frigate, 469 

Hartford, her moral beauty, 470 
1 [artford, blessed work of grace 

on board, 474 

Hartford's, The, "true as steel," 477 

Happy nights, 183 

Happy captain, happy crew, 201 

Happy path of life, The, 440 

Hawks, Captain Jos. II., 222 

Hawks, Capt., his blessed work, 226 
Hawks, Captain Jos. II., lost 

at sea, 235 

Hell upon earth, 173 

Hell fire, In danger of, 438 

Helland, Rev. Ola, 211 

Heart of adamant, A., 42 

Heart, The, opened, 177 

Hearts opened, 461 

Heaven, My soul is in, 450 

Hebrew sailor converted, 399 

Heretic, The young, 126 

Heroism, True, in 

History, A remarkable, 167 

History, A brief, of 43 years, 385 

Historic summary, 498 

Home, Leaving my, 16 

I Iome of my soul, 53 

Home at last, 150, 384 

Home, A desolate, 135 

Hong Kong, 475, 477 

Hope, A ray of, 52 

Hope, In the band of, 138 

Hope revived, 477 

Hope, No, 125 

Hubbard, Luther T 210 

Hudson, Commoduiv ..in. L., 485 

Insane purpose, The, 44 

Island, Lord Howe's, 155 

Iceberg, Run into an, 127 

Ice, The broken, 200 

Idea, born ofGod, An, 459 

Impression, Permanence of, J99 

Interest increasing, 324 

[nterest, renewed, A, 479 

Infidel reclaimed, 383 

Invitation complied with, iS > 

Invitation, Blessed, 242 

« I will if I die by it," 287 

Innocent punished, The, 425 

Intoxicated, Only two out of 200, 479 



INDEX. 



t "> i 



Iron hearts that win, 525 

Iroquois, U. S. S., 453 

Illumining the world, 397 

Jensen, Anders, born of the 

spirit, 107 
Jensen, Anders, his meekness 

and boldness, III 
Jensen, Anders, a Bible colpor- 
teur, 113 
Jensen, Anders, enters the U. 

S. Navy, 1 14 
Jensen, Anders, his zeal for the 

Lord, 114 
Jensen, Anders, lost in the 

Bainbridge, 115 

"Jerusalem Crickets, " 479 

Je.-us, I want to love, 268 

Jesus, One smile from, 295 

44 Jesus, Introduce me to," 374 
Jesus loved in all parts of the 

ship, 490 

Jesuit, The young, converted, 133 

Jew, A converted, 399 

John hi. 16, 124 
"Joseph Lane," U.S. Revenue 

Cutter, 116 

Journal, Extracts from my, 190 

Joy unspeakable, 64 

Joy and grief, 137 

Judgment, The, a long way off, 86 

Judgment, The fear of, lost, 124 

"Just as I am," 461 
Kindness of officers appreciated, 472 

Kindred organizations, 99 

Kneels to God only, 128 

Knock, the Saviour's, heard, 178 

Labors multiplied, 205 

Labors largely increased, 238 

Labors in, more abundant, 243 

Labors, pastoral, appreciated, 462 

La Fayette College, 73 

Lamb of God, Behold the, 283 

Lamb of God my guide, 452 
"Lancaster," U. S. S., Work 

of grace on board, 1 18 

Languages spoken, 273 

Largest of all meetings, 330 

Last call, The, 296 

Last communication, 454 

Lectures to young men, Seven, 162 
Letter, Your, a ministering an 

gel, 184 

23" 



Letter, Your, has awakened 

many, 450 
Letters, Testimonial, 89, 92 

Letter, A remarkable, 377 

Letters read by officers and men, 449 

Letter to a sailor boy, 508 

Leaders, other, to the front, 326 

Leaven of the gospel, 353 

Licensed to preach, 79 

Light, A ray of, 125 

Light spreading, 386 

Light, letting it shine, 444 
Light, Spiritual, on a dark 

coast, 457 

Light in the darkness, 461 

Lightning; what it did, 221 

Like captain, like crew, 481 
Lord's Supper on the gun-deck, 

The, 308 
Lord's Supper on the berth- 
deck, * 333 
Lord's work delightful, 452 
Loss of ship St. Denis, 197 
Lot, contented with my, 444 
Louis, Ferdinand, 446 
Love of God, Wrapped up in the, 150 
Low water, 148 
Loyal to Christ and to the flag, 395 
Man-of-war, Life in, 17 
Man overboard, A, 58, 152 
Man-of-war, A. A sad place, 435 
Man's extremity, God's oppor- 
tunity, 412 
Man proposes, God disposes, 362 
Marshall, Frank, Anecdote of, 424 
Marine poly-glot, A, 257 
Mariners' Church, History of 

the, 97 
Mariners' Church, Influence of, 179 
Mariners' Church largely rep- 
resented, 347 
Mariners' House opened, 241 
Men-of-war visited, 238 
Merrimac, the rebel ram, 441 
Message, The dying, 179 
Meet above, We shall, 453 
Meetings on board men-of-war, 466 
Meetings twice a day at sea, 473 
Meetings in camp, 451 
Meetings, All previous, sur- 
passed, 493 
Meetings on the spar-deck, 500 
McKean, Commodore, 497 






[NDEX, 



Mexico, Mission work in, 

302, 394, 41S 

Minisl lea oi the, 63 

Way to study t 

ned, 64 

y, My first at St. Louis, 80 

Ministry, Intended for the 121 

Ministry, Two colored sailors 

preparing for the, 41 S 

Mission work in the Tortugas, 418 
Mission in Grey Town and in 

San 1 k>mi 419 

Missionary to whalemen, 77 
Missionary zeal of converts, 

148, 187 

Missionary Sailor on the prairies, 157 

ii-top, Prayer-meeting in 

the, 414 

Missive, An affectionate, 198 

Missing Barque, The 236 

Modern Diaspora, The, 466 

Mohawk, U. S. 8., The, 429 

Moral courage, 441 

Monitor and Merrimac, The 430 

Monthly concert of prayer, 191 

. John A., his story, 301, 419 

- and the prophets, 321 

Motherly solicitude, 330 

Mother's influence, A, 367 

Murphy. Rev. K. I)., D.D., 528 

Mystery, Solution of the, 182 

. I'. S. Steamer, 462 

tive, Close of, 517 

inalities, ten received into 

Church, 269 

Naval chaplains, 392 

Naval officers, testimony of, 350 

depleted, 452 

tine dedicated to, 397 

r known in China before, 477 

. . 1 aptain's, 474 

London, Labors in, 77 

; in iu ( 'hii ,, 461 

40 

race, 338 

1 Frigate, 

ship, 485 

I a on hoard of, 487 

. al, 489 

aurch on 

ird, 499 

1 I lope, 491 

.1 a happy ship, 496 



Niagara a model of naval arch- 
il eet ure, 498 

Niagara enjoyed revival over 
tvi years, 502 

North Carolina, U. S. Receiv- 
ing Ship, 299 
North Carolina, Revival on 

board, 302 

Novel sight,*A, 475, 

Noon prayer-meetings, zyf 

Noon prayer-meetings on five 

ships at sea, 270 

Neon prayer-meetings on board 

U. S. S. Constellation, 463 

' 'Not to-night," 124 

" Now or never," 161 

Nouvelle Caledonia, 141 

Obstacles multiplied, 82 

( )ases in the moral waste, 466 

"Onward," U. S. ship, 442 

On the Lord's side. Still, 444 

Organization on a Union basis, 98 
Once more afloat, 452 

One soul, the value of, 443 

One thing needful, 437 

Open Bible, The, 48 

Open my mouth for the Lord, 60 
( )pen door, Entering every, 166, 205 
Overboard, Fall, 21 

Overboard, Five men, 29 

Overboard, Helmsman, 30 

Ohio U. S. Receiving Ship, 337,361 
ci a tt << corre- 

spondence from the, 362 

( ffiicers refuse to take the oath, 495 
Officers, Fifteen converted, 502 

Officers, testimony of, 500, 521 

Officers, Christian, 457 

Officers hiding their tears, 475 

old things passed away, 519 

( )ld Slip meeting, 350 

Old things fast fading away, 198 
Original thirteen, The, 458 

Old North, the, Converts of, 353 
"Old North," Keflex influei 

of, 360 

"Old North," Converts of, in 

the army, 362 

"Old North," Converts study- 
ing for the ministry, 364 
Opposition, No, encountered, 457 
Orlop-deck meeting, 303, 304 
( )utside testimony, 340, 480 



INDEX. 



535 



Pane of glass, The broken, 15 

Pastorate resigned, 513 

Pastoral letters, 503 

Tlace of meeting providential, 499 | 
Path of the just, 471 

Pawnee, U. S. S., 429 ! 

Plank, Commodore on the same, 497 | 
Paraphanalia of a sailor's needs, 5 1 1 
Pissed from death unto life, 241 ! 
Prayer, the midnight, 38 

Prayer, Asking for, 53 

Prayer at the mast-head, 58 

Prayer in the forecastle, no 

Prayer, Silent, 145 

Prayer in the hatch house, 157 

Prayer, That simple, 133 

Prayer answered, 172, 201, 275, 278 
Prayer in the cabin, 201 

Prayer my greatest enjoyment, 473 
Prayer-laden ships, 477 

Prayerless years, Fourteen, 267 
Pray for me, 186 

Pray and pump and pump and 

pray, 278 

Persecution, rife, 437 

Presbytery, Received by the, 71 
Presbytery, taken under the 

care of, 129 

.Presentation of plate, Sj 

Pains of hell, 46 

Praise in many languages, 268 

Pricked in the heart, 179 

Pious seamen appreciated, 521 

Princeton Seminary, 75, 332 

Princeton, Second Church of, 76 
Privilege, A new, 476 

Port Society, The, Non-Sectarian, 97 
" Portsmouth," U. S. Ship, 463 
" Portsmouth," Crew of, unkind, 464 
Power of God, The gospel, the, 455 
Powhatan, U. S. Frigate, 422 

Problem, A difficult, 391 

Profane, Precociously, 223 

Profanity aft, 62 

Professor, The only one in the 

ship, 442 

Profligate life abandoned, 187 

Prophets of evil, 98 

ant, heart and soul, A, 134 
Prayer-meeting at college, 73 

Prayer-meeting in Princeton, 75 
Prayer-meeting, Results of, 76 

Prayer-nneeting greatly blest, 309 



Prayer-meeting, The most re- 
markable, 
Prayer-meeting in Yeoman V 

store-room, 
Prayer-meeting on the sound, 
Prayer-meeting in a heathen 

temple, 
Prayer-meeting daily at sea in 

naval and merchant vessels, 
Prayer-meeting, only one in 

many months, 
Prayer-meeting in the cabin, 
Prayer -meeting on board U. S. 

Frigate Congress, 
Prayer-meeting protected, 
Prayer-meeting in the dispen- 
sary, 
Prayer-meeting never heard of 

before, 
Prayers, Millions of, going up, 
Perdition, Going to, for twelve 

years, 
Pledge, Sixty sailors sign the, 
Peril's brink, On, 
Peril, Again in, 
Persevere, Determined to, 
Peace at the Cross, 
Peace, An inward, 
Preach, Inward call to, 
Preach to a thousand sailors on 

the gun -deck, 
Precocity in sin, 
Precocity, A marvellous, 
Permanent impressions, 
Public approval, 
Pumps, At the, for twenty-one 

days, 
"Pursuit," U. S. Storeship, the, 
Pushing on alone, 
"Pylades," H. B. M. Ship, 
Physician, The Great, 
Quarter-deck, On the,once more, 
Quaint introduction, A, 
Questions answered, 184, 

Questions, A child's, 
Quiet, A sense of, 
Raft, saved in answer to prayer, 

On a, 
Raftery, Prof. Thos., A. M., 

LL.B., 
Rafu.ry, Prof., tells his own 

story, 
Reading tracts ridiculed, 



313 

327 

337 

339 
348 

435 

43^ 

440 
457 

460 

461 
312 

487 

453 

23 

172 

184 
242 

457 
162 

319 

30 

407 

400 



172 

429 
58 
16 

49 
174 

80 
402 
244 
124 

127 

256 

257 
160 






[NDEX 



i lie, 

nporary, 
Request, A mo 424 

Request, The last earthly, 372 

Religion scoffed 12 3 

rion before the n 155 

ion, A sailor will not hide 
his, 1 88 

Religious impressions, The first, 13 
Religious seamen esteemed, 349 
►US seamen best men in 
the ship, 521 

-Relief/' U. S. Store-ship, 

390, 425, 467 
Reminiscence, A pleasing, 45 

grnation of pastorate, 514 

Revival in Monmouth Co., N.J., 79 
Revival in college, 203 

Revival in Princeton, N. J., 76 

Re\ ival in Chicago, 204 

al, A precious, in the navy, 

237, 299 

Revival preceding the rebellion, 395 

. al extending over two 

ITS, 502 

icing over new-born souls, 453 

A polite, 349 

Resolves, The broken, 39 

1 he wicked, 67 

. Limited, 82 

Llion, The sanctified, 180 

iutions complimentary, 514 

I rod my, 135 

: departed souls, 31 

Its of visit to Santa Cruz, 71 

thered, 88 

Ridicule endured, 187 

Riding the tidal wave, 238 

Frigate, 434 

ank, 440 

ink, an honor to his 

rion, 447 

l» A, 353 

1 jug, The, at a discount, 66 

Rum undei 96 

and bad company, 177 

. he would not break, 187 

don, Si 

hool work, 73 

2 43 

: ' 1 la 

■ an, ;^2 

466 



62 
390, 466 

417 

271, 3S6 

183 

174 

62 

115 

245 
325 



Santa Cruz, Island of, 

Saratoga, U. S. S., 

Satan raging, 
Savannah, U. S. S., 

Saved many times, 

Sharks, Among hundreds of, 

Slaves, Religious, 

Star, Fred., 

Star of Hope, The, 

Swarm, The first, 

Sailor, A preacher, 148, 165 

Sailor, A, at college, working 

for Christ, 203 

Sailor turned professor, 256 

Sailor's Home, 42, 208 

Sailor's Home prayer-meeting, 200 

Sailors looking to the ministry, 239 

" the Lord had blest, 440 

" know when they are well 

treated, 482 

Sailors promoted to the quarter 

deck, 468 

Saviour's sake, For the, 392 

"Sea Bird," The, established, 240 
Sea boy's story, A, 436 

Sea, Farewell to the, 64 

Seamen are grateful, 181 

Seamen are accessible, 184 

Sea sports, 19. 

Sea, Struck by a, 30 

Secretary of the U. S. N., Tes- 
timony of the, 519 
Separate, to labor for Christ, 246 
Sheaves, bringing in his, 271 
Stewart, Rev.^Chas. S., U.S.N., 

341,488, 492 

Swearer's prayer, The, 37 

Swearing, No, on board, 64 

Sweat-boxes, New use for, ^63, 473 

Seed, Confidence in the, 444 

Seed, Goodly, sown, 242, 307 

Seed, Scattering the good, 24 S 

Seed-time, iol 

Sweetmeats, My, 151 

Scenes re-enacted, 361 

Idly, described, 494 

Self-reformation a failure, 159 

icrificing effort, 460 

correspondence, 422 

Swede, The faithful, 299 

Seminole. The U. S. Steamer, 390 

! shipboard, 20 r 

Services, Twenty-one a week, 239 



INDEX. 



517 



Sped?.! efforts for the navy, 238 

Sermon, The. set me thinking, 180 
Sermon that was a happy one 

to me, 197 

Sepoy mutiny, The, 24 

"Sick, and ye visited me," 183 

Sick at Tahiti, 122 

Signs of the times, 236 

Simile, A quaint, 193 

Sin, A sense of, crushing, 36, 196 

Sinner, A hardened, at sixteen, 21 

Sinner, The, 377 

Sins like mountains, 438 

Sister's gratitude, A, 385 

Sixty years in sin, 294 
Scriptures, A sailor distributing 

the, 156 
Ship, Join my first, 17 
Ship " Birmingham," of Bath, 49 
Ship " Colorado," The ill-fated, 279 
Ship " Harkaway," 35 
Ship dashed to pieces, 281 
Ship fever, Stricken down with, 129 
Shipmate converted, 60 
Shipmate's story told by himself, 66 
Ships " Prayer-laden," 477 
Ship " Robert Parker," 199 
Ship "St. Denis," Loss of, 189 
Ship to pray, 61 
Shipwrecked a second time, 171 
Shipwrecked three times, 286 
Spirit, The, moving on the wa- 
ters, 440 
Spirit of the Lord everywhere, 452 
Spirit, Quench not the, 123 
Spirits good and bad, 96 
Spiritual agencies multiplied, 338 
Stick, Do they ? 400 
"Stick to it, Here's," 56 
Souls, Longing for, 11S 
Success, The secret of, 98 
Success, Increased, 101 
Success among shipmates, 151 
Sudden death, sudden glory, 115 
Summary of labors, A brief, 243 
Sunk off Tybee Island, 136 
Supply, U. S. Store-ship, 390 
" Suscuehanna," U. S. S., 390, 394 
life, 73 
andoned, 131 
Study for the ministry, 163 
Study, The pastor's, a bureau, 154 
Sturdy helpers, 



Sympathy, Christian, potent, 
Sole survivor of the crew, 



4S1 
60 



Solemnity past description, 312 

Sobriety, A marvel of, 458 

Social meeting, The, 193 
Social meeting, Impressions it 

produced, 194 

Solicitude, Pastoral, 503 
St. Louis, U. S. S., work of 

grace on board, 327 

Sondergaard, Emil, 382 

; Sons of men become sons of God, 452 

j Songs of redeeming love, 475 

! School of Christ, In the, 407 

I Schooner Roanoke, The, 61 

I Schooner's crew, A, 65 

j Sorrow on the sea, 196 

Sorrowing after a godly sort, 478 

Stockbridge, Rev. Jos., U.S.N. 

11S, 310 
Storm and calm, 436 
Storm raging within, 439 
Story, A wonderful, 168 
Strong drink, infatuating, 39 
Stronger, All getting, 2>33 
Soul peril, Great, 37 
Soul-seeking along the wharves, 79 
Souls, The burden of, 338 
Souls converted at college, 73 
Sou's converted at Princeton, 76 
Souls, 1000 hopefully converted, 527 
Souls, 760 received into Mari- 
ners' Church, 527 
Taken in tow, 80 
That prayer haunted me, 103 
Thanksgiving and praise, 184 
Tarrying by the stuff, 462 
Track, On his, once more, 140 
Tract distribution, 60 
Tract, results of a single, 166 
Tracts, Christ-killing, 59 
Tracts in the forecastle, 160 
Teaching missionaries a lesson, 476 
Tears, The people in, ^38 
Tears,Men and women moved to,265 
Tears streaming from all eyes, 312 
Tears for the godless, 442 
Tears, Sailors hiding their, 308, 475 
Tears, many moved to, 352, 487 
Tears flowing freely, 493 
Tears uncontrolled, 501 
Temperance encouraged, 458 
Tempted by the bottle, 476 






[NDEX. 



of wickedn 159 

urs of the law, 4^ 

A crucial, 522 

acnt. The new, 133 

nony of a Christian mer- 
chant, 92 

nony of both ends of the 

ship, 494 

Three hundred attending service,473 

Tidings, Bl tssed, from the sea, 270 

Tidying up, 194 

. it Isthe last, 321 

Time, The last.it rang in my ears, 323 

3 and conflicts, 59 

s by the way, 410 

ind snares, 463 

Token of esteem, A, 87 

ue ! 48 

Torch, The glowing, 398 

:h. The power of a, 288 

hing scene, A, 475 

lights of the heart revealed, 162 

are better than one, 245 

True to covenant vows, 468 

True to the heart's core, 472 

41 True as steel," 478 

Trust in the Lord Jesus, 12 ) 

Truth on the wing, 392 

Unanimity, Singular, 351 

Uncle Sam, For, at any price, 395 

>n Church, A, 98 

Jnion, The, gone, fighting be- 

gun, 495 

1 meeting, 459 

The, safe, 395 

Unit, The, 26S 

United States, Arrival in the, 34 

5. Navy feeling the awakening,34g 

irit in the bond 

of p 458 

3 of the heart, 354 

ttinii utilized, 79 

IOO 

lety :>i duties, 240 

irv work in, 132 

line of battleship, 441 

T 55 

v. . ki,./ i;» the 

Mast 142 

chai C67 

80 
Voluntary rk, 155 



Volunteer Missionaries, 459 

Wabash, U. S. Frigate, 306 

Ward, Mrs. Capt, enthusiastic, 331 
Washed ashore, 170 

Waste, Why this? 362 

Watch and watch at prayers, 474 
Watch-night, The sailor's, 144 

Watches chosen, 57 

Waves, Struggling with the, 170 

Whaling voyage, A, 122 

" What must I do?" '196 

What hath God wrought, 455 

W r ay to study opened, The, 165 

Way to the kingdom, Show me 

the, 167 

Web-feet, The swarthy, 27 

Web-feet, Uncle Sam's, 4° r > 

Weeping over sin, 41, 266, 474 

Weeping, Five officers, 475 

Weeping soul, A, 107 

Weeping souls, 200 

Wife dead and buried, 82 

Will of the Lord be done, The, 444 
Winner of souls, A noble, 4 22 

White squall, The, 21 

Wilson, Thos., Conversion of, 244 
Wilson, Thos., lost at sea, 246 

Wonderful change, A, 439 

Work that must be done, 156 

Word in season, 1 20, 241 

Work, In the, 165 

Work, Samples of the, 191 

Work of winning souls, 150 

Work, prominent features of the. 351 
Work among the soldiers, 45 l 

Work of grace progressing, 363 
Work of grace unprecedented 

at sea, 4 8 9 

Working together for the Lord, 453 
Working, Method of, approved, 193 
World, The whole, leavened, 353 
Worship every night, 4^4 

Worship in the dark, 38*- 43* 

Worship in the dark for two 

years, 4^1 

Worship of God arrested, 46$ 

Worship never disturbed^ 474 

Wyandotte, U. S. S... AM 

"Why will ye die?" 266 

dng tor souls, 5^ 

Youth, A g dless, 169 

Youth A- amiable, ^9° 

Apostolic, 107 



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